Having so lately, in my volumes on the Recent and Fossil Lepadidæ,
expressed as strongly as I could, and with the utmost sincerity, the
obligations under which I lie to very many naturalists, I will not
here repeat my thanks, and will only say that the assistance formerly
rendered me from so many quarters has been most kindly continued
without intermission. The references under the Habitats, in which I
may remark the names of Mr. Cuming and of Mr. Stutchbury, and of the
British Museum, so often recur, show my deep obligations to these
gentlemen and to Dr. Gray, and indeed to most of the British and
several Foreign[1] collectors of recent and fossil shells. At the
period when the Introduction to this volume was printed, I stated that
I did not know whether the Palæontographical Society would publish
the few British fossil Balanidæ; the Council has now honoured me by
determining on this publication, so that these species will hereafter
be more fully illustrated than they could be in the present volume. I
cannot conclude this short preface, without again tendering my most
grateful thanks to the Council of the Ray Society for the publication
of my two volumes, and for the very kind manner in which they have
acceded to all my requests.
DOWN, KENT; _July, 1854_.
[1] I feel under special obligation to Mr. Dana for several very
interesting communications connected with the present subject, and
for information derived from his magnificent work on the Crustacea,
collected during the United States Exploring Expedition. Also
to M. Bosquet, of Maestricht, for the loan and gift of several
interesting fossils, described and illustrated with the utmost
fidelity, in his beautiful "Monographie des Crustacés fossiles du
terrain Crétacé du D. de Limbourg."