Entomological Society at Melbourne. 4925 



possible of the insects of New Holland, the description of new species, and the trans- 

 mission of as many duplicates as possible to the various Entomological Societies in 

 England, on the Continent and in America. For the proper carrying out of our 

 objects, we most earnestly invite the assistance and co-operation of our friends at 

 home ; and I am deputed to write to as many as possible of the leading members of 

 the Entomological Society, and request their advice and support. You are eminently 

 qualified to be of great service to us, and I have presumed upon my slight acquaint- 

 ance with you to write to you rather fully upon the matter. If you would inform me 

 where and how it would be possible for us to obtain descriptions of the greatest 

 number of known species, and would forward to me a copy of the Rules and Regula- 

 tions of the Entomological Society of London, you would render us a most important 

 service. Of course it is most desirable that we should know, as far as possible, what 

 species have been described, as it would not be advisable to increase the number of 

 synonyms ; and a list of the publications in which Australian insects are figured or 

 described, as far as could be given, would be highly valuable to us. I may mention 

 to you that we have many hard-working practical entomologists here, and that cor- 

 respondents are ready to assist our endeavours in Sydney, Van Dieman's Land, 

 Adelaide and Swan River. I am myself about to start on a journey to the Clarence 

 River, 700 miles north of Sydney, one of the objects of which will be the formation of 

 an entomological collection. In Melbourne alone we already possess nearly 4000 

 species, my own collection numbering upwards of 2000 ; many of them, I believe, are 

 undescribed, and more particularly this may apply to the smaller Coleoptera, which 

 are very numerous in Victoria. I need hardly say to you that the field before us is a 

 most extensive one, and must yield a productive harvest. We shall endeavour to 

 publish a journal of our transactions every six months, or at least once in the year, 

 and shall hold it as one of our most particular rules to transmit as many specimens as 

 possible to any Societies desirous of obtaining them. I am of course aware that a vast 

 number of the insects of this colony have long been known and described at home; 

 but I am perfectly certain that we have not yet reached the threshold of our knowledge 

 with regard to the whole, and I believe that the most efficient way to promote this 

 desirable end is the establishment of a society such as that which, I am happy to say, 

 is in a state of progress. A very old friend of yours, Mr. Christy, the engineer, is most 

 warmly interested in the object, and is now naturalising in the district of the River 

 Murray: he desired me to remember him most kindly to you: he has paid great 

 attention to the Lepuioptera, and has figured a great number of species with their 

 caterpillars. The Lepidoptera known to the Melbourne entomologists, as far as I can 

 ascertain, at present number about 700 or 800 species, and most of these have been 

 obtained within a comparatively very short distance of the city. I may observe that 

 of all the orders of insects the Lepidoptera are the fewest in individuals : of butterflies 

 only twenty-eight species are known to us, and these have mostly been obtained in the 

 open spaces on mountain ranges : I am speaking now of the Melbourne district only, 

 as on the Sydney side diurnal Lepidoptera are more frequent than with us : our most 

 common species is a Cynthia, very closely allied to C. Cardui, and, as far as I can 

 judge, identical with it; I have not, however, been able to compare it with a British 

 specimen. You mentioned to me that you were desirous of obtaining specimens of 

 the Longicorns of New Holland ; I have collected a great number for you, but I shall 

 not forward them until after my return from the Clarence, as 1 hope in my journey to 

 find some new and beautiful species. In the meantime, if you will favour me with 



