INTRODUCTION. 
71 
wood, of a convenient portable size, are provided 
with partitions or moveable shelves, each consisting 
of a simple board ; these are fitted at the distance 
of two inches one from another, in grooves in the 
sides of the bos, in which they are made to slide 
with accuracy and facility, and are therefore re- 
movable at pleasure. These boards or shelves have 
necessarily the exact dimensions of the ends of the 
chest, and are placed in a vertical position ; a small 
vacancy is preserved between this lower extremity 
and the floor, and any object detached by accident 
falls to the bottom without causing further injury. 
Each board or shelf, lined with cork or soft wood, 
supplies, in some measure, the place of a cabinet 
drawer. When taken out of the box and placed 
on a table, it rests securely, and affords a plain sur- 
face, upon which insects may be fixed and examined 
with perfect ease and security: it is returned into 
the box in an instant, which, if carefully made, 
w'hen closed secures most effectually the contents. 
A small quantity of camphor, at the bottom, spreads 
its influence over the whole. One large box may 
conveniently contain fourteen boards, answering the 
purpose of as many drawers ; and, being eighteen 
inches long, they have a manageable size. This 
plan I resolved to adopt. In the early period of 
my pursuits, the boxes which I provided were made 
of light wood, and to their use I must ascribe, in a 
great measure, the preservation of my collection. 
I found that they afforded a complete protection 
against the ants and other destructive insects which 
