OF WASHINGTON. 49 



exchange or by purchase should be labeled with the name of 

 the person from whose collection they come, so as to preserve, 

 as much as possible, the history of the specimens. 



The above mentioned labels should be on every specimen in 

 a collection, while the following are to be attached only 

 to certain specimens : 



5. Name of the species. Most of our collections are now 

 arranged in vertical columns, and this label can either be 

 attached to the first specimen of a set or separately pinned 

 above or below the set of specimens belonging to the same 

 species. The latter method is largely used in collections of 

 Macrolepidoptera or other large-sized insects, but I prefer the 

 first-mentioned method, viz : to attach the name to the pin of 

 the first specimen, which should be the best determined or the 

 best marked specimen. The substitution of check-list num 

 bers for written or printed labels is by no means to be recom 

 mended. 



6. Typical specimens, i. e., such from which a description 

 has been drawn up and published, should be designated by a 

 special label written by the author himself. 



7. Specimens which have been determined by an authority 

 in a special group or order should be furnished with a special 

 label. If such authority returns specimens sent him for de 

 termination with labels in his own handwriting, they should be 

 left on the specimens ; if too large, they have to be folded. 



8. Special labels, which either refer to the food-plant or life- 

 history of the specimen, or which indicate some peculiarity of 

 the specimen, e. g., a monstrosity, a hermaphrodite, etc. This 

 is the only label which, in my opinion, will be found necessary 

 to be replaced in some instances by a number referring to 

 notes kept in note books with corresponding number. 



As a matter of course it will never be found necessary to use 

 on a specimen all of the above-mentioned labels ; most private 

 collections will contain few, if any, types ; few specimens will 

 have been determined by authorities ; and to few specimens 

 the collector will have notes worth preserving regarding food- 

 plants or habits. 



As to the remaining labels, their number can still be reduced 

 by a sysiem of combination. A combination label which has 

 given general satisfaction to all to whom it has been communi 

 cated is a two-line label printed in diamond type, on heavy 

 writing paper. The upper line consists of the name of the 

 locality, e. g., " Washngtn " (a name consisting of more 

 than eight letters to be abbreviated), and the lower line has at 

 the right hand corner " DC " (interpunctuation and spacing to 

 be avoided so as to save space). This leaves on the second 



