4226 Entomological Society. 



sustained, not in the death of an individual, but in the destruction of 

 a zoological treasure ; I allude, of course, to the collections made by 

 our friend Mr. Wallace. That energetic traveller, led by the thirst I 

 have already described to behold with his own eyes, and not through 

 the too often distorting medium of books, the exuberant luxuriance 

 of animal and vegetable life as developed by the rays of a vertical sun, 

 devoted himself to the acquisition of, and actually acquired, a most 

 intimate knowledge of the Natural History of the Valley of the Ama- 

 zons ; but alas, returning with his hard-earned treasures, the ill-fated 

 ' Helen,' in which he was a passenger, took fire and went down in 

 mid-ocean, leaving our friend to buffet with the waves. Providentially 

 he escaped ; he was picked up by the ' Jordeson' two hundred miles 

 from land, and has lived to record in glowing words the history of his 

 discoveries, his triumphs, his losses and his preservation. I cannot 

 forbear to quote from his own pen the record of his feelings, when, 

 no longer in jeopardy, he first realized the enormous loss he had 

 sustained : — 



" It was now, when the danger appeared past, that I began to feel 

 fully the greatness of my loss. With what pleasure had I looked 

 upon every rare and curious insect I had added to my collection ! 

 How many times, when almost overcome by the ague, had I crawled 

 into the forest and been rewarded by some unknown and beautiful 

 species ! How many places, which no European foot but my own 

 had trodden, would have been recalled to my memory by the rare 

 birds and insects they had furnished to my collection ! How many 

 weary days and weeks had I passed, upheld only by the fond hope of 

 bringing home many new and beautiful forms from those wild regions ; 

 every one of which would be endeared to me by the recollections 

 they would call up ; which should prove that I had not wasted the 

 advantages I had enjoyed, and would give me occupation and amuse- 

 ment for many years to come ! And now every thing was gone, and 

 1 had not one specimen to illustrate the unknown lands I had trod, or 

 to call back the recollection of the wild scenes I had beheld ! But 

 such regrets were vain, and I tried to think as little as possible about 

 what might have been, and to occupy myself with the state of things 

 which actually existed." 



Mr. Wallace is now on the eve of departure for the eastern instead 

 of the western world ; he sails in H. M. S. ' Frolic/ first to Sydney 

 and then to the islands of the Eastern Archipelago. His face is 

 familiar to us here ; his writings are known to most of us, and some 

 of them are on the point of publication in our ' Transactions.' I am 



