DHJ DHÜHY, an 18th century Entomologist 
By T. B. A. Cockerell 
Scientific Monthly, Jan.' 1922, pp. 67-82. 
Druiy to Pallas, Peh. 28th, 1768 (p, 71) 
I sincerely lament with yoti ye fall of ye Aurelian 
Society, (1.) there wanted but tv;o or three good 
members to have made it become respectable, but Da Costa’s 
tenper and principle was sufficient to overturn a Kingdom. 
I imagine ere this yoii have heard of his Fate . If not, 
I will tell you. He is no longer Librarian to ye Royal 
Society. He is dismissed from thence with ignoraiuy and 
disgrace. He was deficient in his accounts above <3^ 1100, 
for which reason they siezed on all his effects, and they 
are to be sold by public auction. It v.a.s no uncommon 
practice with him to make many Gentlemen annual Pellov/s 
ih his accounts who had paid their proper quotas to be 
perpetual ones, and thus by placing them on this footing 
he annually secreted large sums from ye society. I’ll 
tell you how it was discovered. Dr. Hope of Edinburgh 
(2.) having been chose a^ Fellow by ye recommendation of 
a gentleman in London (I believe Dr. FOthergill) was sur- 
prised to see his name omitted in ye annual list published, 
and wrote to desiring his friend to inquire ye reason; 
who in examining into ye affair foimd he was himself 
entered in ye book as an annual member, tho’ at ye same 
time knew he paid ye necessary sum to becom.e a peri)etual 
one. This neglect in ye librarian being discovered they 
proceeded to examine several others and found I am told 
upwards of thirty who were entered in that manner and 
their fines applied to his own private purpose. Hence 
ye periodical work he intended to publish, which I men- 
tioned in my last, is entirely stopt; the circumstance 
I must own I am very sorry for oh account of Natural 
R'istoi^r in general. But if it can not be promoted by 
men of better principles than him it is better perhaps 
for it to lye dormant (3.) 
(1.) T'Ms seems to have been the first entomological 
society. There was a later Aurelian Society, before the 
foundation the Entomological Society of London. 
(2.) John îfope, born 1725; v/as professor of botany and 
superintendenti of the Botanic Garden in Edinburgh. 
Died 1786. 
(3.) Da Costa is still remembered by conchologists. For 
instance, the dfomraon Helix v irgat a was named by him. 
