CHAPTER VII. 
THE COLEOPTERA — BEETLES. 
Tpie Coleoptera are those insects which are commonly called 
beetles. There are great numbers of them, and perhaps they 
have been more carefully studied, so far as their specific differences 
are concerned, than any other insects. More pains have been 
taken to collect them than have been given to the discovery of any 
other orders, and special collections have been formed by a great 
number of amateur naturalists, who have searched the whole world 
over for these objects, which appear to be so very interesting to 
them. Books which contain simple descriptions of the Coleoptera 
appear year by year in the different countries of Europe and 
America, and some treat of one genus of beetles, whilst others 
refer to the species of a district. The beetles of France are not 
yet all described, and a distinguished naturalist, M. Mulsant, of 
Lyons, has been at work at them for more than twenty-five years. 
This may give us an idea that the species of beetles are tolerably 
numerous ; but really their numbers are legion, and it may be 
asserted, with a tolerable degree of truth, that 100,000 species have 
been collected and placed in museums. The greater number of 
them have been described in large works, in periodicals, and in 
pamphlets, and it will readily be understood that it is not very 
easy to find the description of any particular beetle, in conse- 
quence of the scattered nature of the literature of the subject- 
Fortunately, Professor Lacordaire has published a work enume- 
rating the beetles, and giving the names of books which contain 
their descriptions and drawings. 
Considering what charms the Coleoptera have for so large a 
number of naturalists, one might think that there was something 
