OF THE LINN.EAN SCARAB.EI. 23 



ginal, or even new, is nevertheless I believe, with the ex- 

 ception of Mr. Kirby's Century of Insects in the 12th 

 volume of the Liwucan Transactions, now for the first 

 time generahzed in entomology. 



In botany we often see the name of the family taken 

 from that of the genus which is considered as affording 

 more peculiarly the type of construction by which the 

 former is characterized. In entomology also, Latreille 

 has used the same plan ; as when he names the family of 

 Geotrnpini from the genus Geotrupes, the family of Scara- 

 bekles from Scarabceus, &c. But, unfortunately, unless his 

 work be kept constantly in the hand, we have no method 

 of knowing from the name of a group whether it means a 

 family, section, tribe, or any other of his numerous sub- 

 divisions. This is the natural result of his having neither 

 generahzed the abovementioned mode of forming family 

 names, nor even their terminations ^. To remedy this in- 

 convenience I have followed the suggestion of Mr. Kirby, 

 and designated families 'by the patronymic termination 

 in -idee, which, though not classically correct in the case 

 where the primitive has a feminine termination, is never- 

 theless preferable to any other I have been able to devise, 

 as well on account of uniformity as euphonize gratia. 



With respect to the general principles of Nomenclature 

 I have no remarks to offer, nor indeed would such a sub- 

 ject be altogether suitably introduced within the limits of 

 a monograph. But it is really impossible not to express 



* Count Hoffmansegg of Berlin has suggested an improvement in the 

 termination of new generic names, the value of which will readily be un- 

 derstood by those wlio possess entomological cabinets. He proposes that 

 the new name should always, if possible, be of the same gender with the 

 genus to which the species originally belonged. 



