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VOL. XXIII. LONDON, JUNE, 1891. No. 6. 



NOTES ON SOME SPECIES OF NOCTUID^ DESCRIBED BY 



FRANCIS WALKER. 



BY PROF. JOHN B. SMITH, NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J. 



In Vol. XXXII. and XXXIII. of the list of Lepidoptera Heterocera 

 in the British Museum, Mr. Walker described some species from " West 

 Canada, in the Rev. Mr. Bethune's collection." No records of specimens 

 in the Museum are given, and the descriptions are of specimens apparently 

 returned to the collector. On the chance of these specimens being still 

 in existence I wrote Dr. Bethune, begging him for such assistance and 

 information as was in his power to afford. He very kindly responded, 

 saying, " I shall send you by mail to-morrow a box containing the few 

 specimens that I have left that were named for me by the late F. Walker. 

 The labels on them are mostly in his own hand-writing. When I came 

 here in 1870 I had no room for my cabinet and was obliged to store it 

 away in a dark place for some years. I was also so very hard worked, 

 building up this school, etc., that I was unable even to look at my speci- 

 mens. Consequently the Dermestes got in and destroyed a large number 

 — especially those set low down — that were my first captures, and that 

 Walker had named. Thus many of his types had perished. I do not 

 think it matters very much, as the descriptions and identifications were 

 often so unsatisfactory. After seeing what I send you, you might abolish 

 all the others that are stated to be in my collection, because they are no 

 longer in existence and cannot be identified." 



The box came duly to hand, and as the specimens gave rise to some 

 doubt, and I desired to fully establish the value of the labels, I again 

 wrote Dr. Bethune, and he replied : 



" I have been unable to find any more records regarding my ' Walker 

 insect*.' The printed labels and numbers on those I sent you were put 

 on by myself— the written ones are Walker's. It is of course quite pos- 

 sible that some of them got transposed, as they have been changed from 

 one cabinet to another, and had also to go through a severe disinfecting 



