62 PROCEEDINGS ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



paper, and recorded in his notes, is worthy of the highest com- 

 mendation. When we consider that only a little more than two 

 years ago, December, 1906, he knew practically nothing about 

 insects and that his education was limited to the country 

 schools, his accomplishment in this, as well as his general rapid 

 progress, was nothing less than phenomenal. 



His work on the eucnemicl beetles was almost entirely on 

 his own initiative and carried on in addition to his regular duties 

 as preparator in Dr. Hopkins's office. He was inspired, perhaps, 

 by finding a curious larva while on an excursion to Great Falls, 

 on December 31, 1907, which attracted much attention; no one 

 in the Museum or the Bureau of Entomology could identify it 

 beyond the family it represented. Evidently he determined that 

 he would find out for himself, which he did, and thus demon- 

 strated that he was endowed with the true spirit of the so- 

 called old-fashioned naturalists, who, through their love for 

 nature, and natural ability to see and do things, succeeded in 

 spite of many disadvantages and apparently insurmountable 

 obstacles. 



The last time we saw Mr. Van Horn at the office was on 

 February 4, 1909. On February 9, following a temporary 

 illness, on leaving his home with a bundle under his arm, he 

 remarked to his mother that he was going to the laundry. 

 This is the last that has been heard of him. Dr. Hopkins 

 concluded his remarks with the statement that he felt very deep- 

 ly this apparent unhappy ending of such a promising career, 

 mainly on account of the great need of men of his character 

 and ability to assist in the present work on forest insects, take 

 charge of important lines of investigations, and continue the 

 efforts to advance the science of forest entomology as the older 

 workers drop out. 



Mr. Schwarz is in full accord with those authors who con- 

 sider the Eucnemidas as a family distinct from the Elateridae. 

 It is to be regretted that the early stages of some of the out- 

 lying genera, as Perothops and others, are still unknown. 



Mr. Crawford next discussed the remarkable parasite 

 reared from these beetles by Mr. Van Horn in a paper entitled : 



