1895-] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 183 



deep, put in a depth of two inches of dampened sawdust, and 

 in this I buried my papers of insects and left them forty eight 

 hours with like results. Again I buried two papers twenty-four 

 hours and then took them out, placed them on the surface of the 

 sawdust forty-eight hours longer, replaced the cover both times. 

 With the last method a Syneda moth became so limp that the 

 wings laid over on my thumb and forefinger, the pin ran through 

 body as if it were a jelly. Another plan I adopted was to fill a 

 tin fruit-preserving can with sawdust, place a piece of tissue 

 paper on the surface of the sawdust, take my insects out of the 

 packets and place them on the tissue paper, then place an inverted 

 tin can that will fit and cover the rimmed mouth of the can con- 

 taining the sawdust. The vacuum in the top can holds the vapor 

 and forces it to return to make its escape close to the insect, 

 thus having a double action as it were. It is clear that there is 

 an increased volume of vapor over sand and being held in bounds 

 doubles its action and is possibly slightly acidulated, but this I 

 will leave for science to deal with. Try it entomologists, there is 

 room for improvement. For soft bodied moths and microlepi- 

 doptera it works like a charm. Geometrids, Pyralids and smaller 

 insects spread in from twelve to eighteen hours in the double can 

 method, and with those that are left in longer, care must be taken 

 in spreading to let the wings dry somewhat before putting on the 

 bits of glass to keep them in place, as the wing may stick if too 

 wet. This fact need hardly be stated to the experienced ento- 

 mologist, but to those that are beginners caution is necessary. 

 In using this method it will also be found that the antennae and 

 bodies can be adjusted in any desirable position. 



-o- 



PSELAPHID/E. 



By EMIL BRENDEL. 



Bryaxis (Reichenbachia) semirugosa n. sp. is a dark umber-brown 

 Pselaphide with legs and antenna; more dull reddish brown and 1.3 mm. 

 long. Head, prothorax and abdomen polished impunctate, the elytra 

 deeply and roughly variolate, the variolae irregularly transversely, eyes 

 small prominent ; vertex quadrate with three large, equal confluent 

 equidistant foveoe; clypeus transverse as long as the rather long, bilobed 

 labrum. Antennae about as long as the head and prothorax, the joints 

 3-7 oblong conical, the 8 smallest quadrate, 9 and 10 slightly transverse, 

 rapidly increasing in width, u large, obliquely pointed; prothorax very 



