NOTES ON CHAETOTAXY 
153 
but scanty in number, so that some of the species cannot be inter¬ 
preted with absolute certainty, but only with great probability (‘ so 
dass einige der Arten nicht mit absoluter Gewissheit, sondern nur 
mit grosser Wahrscheinlichkeit gedeutet werden konnen’).” It 
would be difficult to bestow praise more sparingly, and with more 
caution. And yet, one feels like exclaiming: “ better late than 
never.” Both Loew and Rondani died five years later, in 1879. 
Rondani for a time had been in correspondence with Macquart. 
Among the books from his library which I purchased from the 
bookseller Hoepli, in Milan, there was a manuscript of sixteen 
quarto pages in Macquart’s handwriting. It is entitled: “ Suite de 
l’examen des Tachinaires envoy£s par Mr. Rondani a Mr. Macquart 
en 1844.” It begins with No. 21 and ends with No. 90, each num¬ 
ber representing a species about the name of which Macquart gives 
his opinion. 
Haliday, during his residence in Lucca (Italy), must have been 
very useful to Rondani. As an instance of his solicitude, I will 
mention that he provided the latter with a set of his own (Hal- 
iday’s) publications, with manuscript notes and corrections. Of 
several papers of which Haliday had no separate copies to give 
away, he supplied copies in his own handwriting. The thirty-three 
pages of the article in the Entomological Magazine , 1832-1833, 
p. 147-180, “Catalogue of Diptera occurring about Holy wood, in 
Devonshire,” Haliday translated for Rondani into Latin. I found 
this manuscript among my purchase from the bookseller Hoepli, in 
Milan. It is a model of calligraphy. 
Opinions and criticisms about Rondani’s work on Acalyptrata 
will be found in Dr. Th. Becker’s publications in the Berl. Ent. 
Zeit ., 1894, p. 81 ( Scatomyzidae ), 1895, p. 174 ( Sapromyzidae ), 
ibid., p. 322 (JLonchaea '). 
XX NOTES ON CHAETOTAXY, COMPLEMENTARY TO MY PRE¬ 
VIOUS PUBLICATIONS ON THE SAME SUBJECT 
The study of Diptera, previous to the introduction of a regular 
system of Chaetotaxy, may serve as a remarkable instance of the 
routine (irrational old habit) which, with rare exceptions, prevails 
in all human affairs. 
