54 UTILIZATION OF MINUTE LIFE. 



produced, pronounced it to be a peculiar scarlet,, 

 which, until then, could only be obtained by artificial 

 mixtures. It appeared to have a decided advantage 

 over real cochineal as regards the dyeing of wool, 

 but only if the new insect could be procured at a 

 cheaper rate than cochineal, as it was much less 

 rich in colouring matter than the latter. Moreover, 

 the colouring matter of this new insect is not car- 

 minium, but a perfectly distinct substance. Now 

 all insects belonging to the genus Coccus yield car- 

 minium, therefore M. Guerin's new insect is certainly 

 not a Coccus, but probably, as M. Dumeril stated, an 

 Aphis , whence Aphis fabce would be its proper name. 



A new dye, called Canadian cochineal, has been 

 lately prepared by Professor Lawson, of Queen's 

 College, Canada, from an apparently new species of 

 Coccus, which was noticed in the summer of 1860, 

 on the common black spruce (Abies nigra) in the 

 neighbourhood of Kingston. The new dye is very 

 similar to cochineal, but, unlike it, can be produced 

 in temperate climates. 



I must here briefly notice the little insects which 

 furnish lac, and which belong to other species of 

 Coccus. Lac is a dark red substance which was 

 supposed to be formed by Coccus lacca (or Coccus 

 ficus) as bees form their cells. But from the 

 analysis of this substance made by Unverdorben, it 

 appears to consist of five sorts of resins mixed with 



