I at once wrote to Mr. Darwin to this effect."
* * * * *
_Down, Bromley, Kent, S.E. February 26, 1867._
My dear Wallace,--Bates was quite right, you are the man to apply to in
a difficulty. I never heard anything more ingenious than your
suggestion, and I hope you may be able to prove it true. That is a
splendid fact about the white moths; it warms one's very blood to see a
theory thus almost proved to be true.[57] With respect to the beauty of
male butterflies, I must as yet think that it is due to sexual
selection; there is some evidence that dragonflies are attracted by
bright colours; but what leads me to the above belief is so many male
Orthoptera and Cicadas having musical instruments. This being the case,
the analogy of birds makes me believe in sexual selection with respect
to colour in insects. I wish I had strength and time to make some of the
experiments suggested by you; but I thought butterflies would not pair
in confinement; I am sure I have heard of some such difficulty. Many
years ago I had a dragonfly painted with gorgeous colours, but I never
had an opportunity of fairly trying it.
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