PRESENT VALUES OF PRINCIPAL WORKS ON LEPIDOPTERA. 221 



Nature, whether exhibited on the animal or vegetable side, 

 attracted him, and until a few months of his death he might be 

 recognised by his rapid stride, slight stoop, and long white beard, 

 as he took his almost daily walk into the Forest he loved so well. 



W. J. Lucas. 



THE PEE SENT VALUES OF THE PRINCIPAL WORKS 

 ON THE PAL/EARCTIC LEPIDOPTERA. 



By W. G. Sheldon, F.Z.S., F.E.S. 



It has always been the case that those Lepidopterists whose 

 names have come down to the present time, and who will live in 

 the future through their entomological work, have possessed 

 copies of the principal books their predecessors or contemporaries 

 have written on the subjects of their studies. This must neces- 

 sarily be the case with all who propose to do original work, 

 because unless it is known what has been written by others, it 

 is impossible to form an accurate opinion as to whether a 

 particular fact or idea is new or not. In our own country 

 all the great Lepidopterists of the past have possessed libraries, 

 extremely complete ones many of them ; J. F. Stephens, John 

 Ourtis, Stainton, T. A. Chapman, J. W. Tutt, Henry Doubleday. 

 Edmund Newman and Lord Walsingham are a few who acquired 

 •every book they could meet witb that would be of assistance in 

 their studies ; as an instance of this the library of J. F. Stephens 

 in 1852, at the time of his death, consisted of 1150 volumes ; 

 it was purchased en bloc by Stainton, and the latter possessed 

 many other books on entomology. The library of the late T. A. 

 €hapman consisted of practically everything of importance that 

 had ever been written on Palsearctic Lepidoptera, and must have 

 consisted of at least 2000 volumes. The library, world famous, 

 which was acquired by the late Lord Walsingham, is, of course, 

 in the Natural History Museum. In addition to being practi- 

 cally complete so far as the owner's studies were concerned, it pos- 

 sesses many priceless unique gems, such as the original plates of 

 Godart and Duponchel's great work. Even to those who do not 

 aspire to do original work a library is an extremely desirable pos- 

 session. It is not possible to get anything like the full amount of 

 enjoyment out of one's study without one. For instance, I pick 

 up a magazine and become interested in an article on a certain 

 species. In this article the writer refers to an. author on a point 

 which can only be appreciated or understood by turning up the 

 reference in that author; and when this has been digested it is 

 often found that a further reference to another book is necessary ; 

 and before the point is satisfactorily dealt with some half-dozen 

 books must be consulted. Now, how is one to get on unless all 



