1 899. J A Book on Insects. 203 



Although the nomenclature adopted for genera and species is not 

 always in accord with the strict law of priority, it is refreshing to find 

 that the usurping " Periplaneta" has been discarded, and the ancient 

 "Blatta" restored. 



There is one point here, however, upon which, as a candid critic, I 

 canuot congratulate Mr. Carpenter, and that is his morphological 

 nomenclature. "Segment" is rightly substituted for the erroneously 

 but unhappily almost universally employed "joint," but where such 

 terms as, for example — "thorax," "abdomen," "antennae," "tibia," 

 "tarsus," u salivary glands," etc., are in constant use by workers in all 

 countries, it seems a mistaken policy to employ such uncouth terms as 

 *" fore-body," "hind-body," "feelers," "shin," "foot," "spittle-glands," 

 etc., and the substitution of the hideous "in-pushing" for "invagina- 

 tion " cannot be commended. 



Chapter 2 sketches the life-history of insects from the egg, through 

 fertilisation, and the development of the embryo to the emergence of 

 the imago, while the author has not forgotten to touch upon such 

 obscure and interesting phenomena as virgin reproduction, larval 

 reproduction and hypermetamorphosis. 



The third chapter sets forth the classification of Insects, or rather — 

 the nomenclature of their classification. "Variety" and " Species," 

 and the causes of variation are discussed — Polyommatus astrarche, its 

 varieties and allies, being taken as instances — leading to the origin of 

 species, natural selection, the utility of specific characters; etc. It is 

 in this chapter that the author displays more particularly his originality 

 of treatment, and it is one that every young student ought to read 

 carefully. 



Mr. Carpenter sets forth very clearly the various theories now holding 

 the field, but though he wisely cautions the reader to " suspend judg- 

 ment," he openly and boldly refuses to " subscribe to the ' all sufficiency' 

 of natural selection." It is remarkable, however, that many theories 

 tend to point back to " natural selection '" in the end, e.g., the last-named 

 is dismissed as inapplicable in dealing with the atrophy of vision in 

 cave insects, but the alternative " economy of nutrition " is really 

 only natural selection under another name (p. 288). 



Chapter 4 deals with the orders of insects, concisely enumerating the 

 salient characteristics of the various families, and although these are not 

 in every instance rigorously accurate when applied to extra-Britannic 

 forms, they appear to be sufficient to enable the young student to locate 

 any British Insect in its proper family.'' Fifteen orders are considered 

 more or less valid, and are arranged in the following secp:ience.(pp. 

 162-4):— Collembola, Thysanura, Dermaptera, Orthoptera, Platyptera 

 (Stone-flies, etc.), Thysanoptera, Ilemiptera, Plectoptera (Mayflies), 

 Odonata, Neuroptera (Lacewings, etc.), Coleoptera, Trichoptera, 

 Lepidoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera. 



* " Body " (corpus^ corps, Kvrper, etc.) being used to denote the whole 

 insect) " fore-body " is surely strictly equivalent to the head, and not to 

 the thorax ! 



