...--Yours sincerely,
ALFRED R. WALLACE.
* * * * *
TO F. BATES
_Ternate. March 2, 1858._
My dear Mr. Bates,--When I received your very acceptable letter (a month
ago) I had just written one to your brother, which I thought I could not
do better than send to you to forward to him, as I shall thereby be able
to confine myself solely to the group you are studying and to other
matters touched upon in your letter. I had heard from Mr. Stevens some
time ago that you had begun collecting exotic Geodephaga, but were
confining yourself to one or two illustrations of each genus. I was
sure, however, that you would soon find this unsatisfactory. Nature must
be studied in detail, and it is the wonderful variety of the species of
a group, their complicated relations and their endless modification of
form, size and colours, which constitute the pre-eminent charm of the
entomologist's study. It is with the greatest satisfaction, too, I hail
your accession to the very limited number of collectors and students of
exotic insects, and sincerely hope you may be sufficiently favoured by
fortune to enable you to form an extensive collection and to devote the
necessary time to its study and ultimately to the preparation of a
complete and useful work.
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