My life : a record of events and opinions - Wallace-online.org

LIFE INCHAPTER XIVLONDON, 1 862-1 8/ 1—SCIENTIFIC ANDLITERARY WORKOn reaching London in the spring of 1862 I wentto live with my brother-in-law, Mr. Thomas Sims,who had a photographic business in WestbourneGrove. Here, in a large empty room at the top ofthe house, I brought together all the collections whichI had reserved for myself and which my agent, Mr.Stevens, had taken care of for me. I found myselfsurrounded by a quantity of packing-cases andstore-boxes, the contents of many of which I had notseen for five or six years, and to the examinationand study of which I looked forward with intenseinterest.From my first arrival in the East I had determinedto keep a complete set of certain groups from everyisland or distinct locality which I visited for my ownstudy on my return home, as I felt sure they wouldafford me very valuable materials for working out thegeographical distribution of animals in the archipelago,and also throw light on various other problems. Thesevarious sets of specimens were sent home regularlywith the duplicates for sale, but either packedseparately or so distinctly marked " Private " thatthey could be easily put aside till my return home.The groups thus reserved were the birds, butterflies,