CHAP. VIII. | Collection of Insects. 143 
sheltered spot. He afterward visited it from time to time. 
Fish stomachs, and the refuse of fishermen’s lines, proved a 
rich mine for marine objects. By these means he obtained 
many things which could not otherwise have been obtained , 
and. he thus added many rare objects to his gradually grow- 
ing collection. 
He was, however, doomed to many disappointments. 
One of these may be mentioned. Among his different 
collections was a large variety of insects. He had these 
pinned down in boxes in the usual manner. He numbered 
them separately. When he had obtained the proper names 
of the insects, his intention was to prepare a catalogue. He 
knew that there were sheets of figures sold for that and 
similar purposes, but he could not afford to buy them. He 
accordingly got a lot of old almanacs and multiplication-ta- 
bles, and cut out the numbers. It was a long and tedious 
process, but at length he completed it. 
When the insects were fixed and numbered, Edward re- 
moved the cases into. his garret preparatory to glazing them. 
He piled them one upon the other, with their faces down- 
ward, in order to keep out the dust. There were twenty 
boxes, containing in all nine hundred and sixteen insects. 
After obtaining the necessary glass, he went into the garret 
to fetch out the cases. On lifting up the first case, he found 
that it had been entirely stripped of its contents. He was 
perfectly horrified. He tried the others. They were all 
empty! They contained nothing but the pins which had 
held the insects, with here and there a head, a leg, or a 
wing. A more complete work of destruction had never 
been witnessed. It had probably been perpetrated by rats 
or mice. 
His wife, on seeing the empty cases, asked him what he 
was to do next. ‘ Weal,” said he, “it’s an awfu’ disap- 
pointment; but I think the best thing will be to set to 
work and fill them up again.” To accumulate these nine 
hundred and sixteen insects had cost him four years’ labor! 
