THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 223 



later the date I had written still undisturbed, the only acknowledgment of 

 my service came forth with admirable dexterity. 



Use every man after his desert, and who should 'scape whipping ? 

 Nevertheless I gave up forever this kind of chronological record. 



Three additions to my communication before the librarians have been 

 published, but they contain only isolated cases, certainly nothing of gen- 

 eral importance. Of course the insects mentioned had injured books, and 

 as everybody likes to have his own little pest, the new comers were chron- 

 icled with some emphasis. Nevertheless I have followed up the matter 

 carefully during these six years, and would be able to give a nice list of 

 names of more or less queer composition. Six years ago a part of the 

 publications on book pests was not to be found here. But in the mean- 

 time I have been able to get some of them, the most important ones 

 through the splendid custom of the public library of ordering books 

 w-anted by scientists for their study. 



There is, in fact, no end of obnoxious creatures. " Misery acquaints 

 a man with strange bedfellows." Perhaps the word obnoxious is not 

 exacdy in the right place, as probably those bedfellows may consider the 

 intruding stranger decidedly obnoxious. Nevertheless, as such philo- 

 sophical views would destroy every legitimate Museum's business, we are 

 bound to our accustomed impoliteness towards all intruders. 



One morning Mr. R. T. Jackson, assistant in Geology in the Museum, 

 asked my advice and help against a new pest in his department. The 

 stones and petrefacts were left untouched, but all the new labels, written 

 during the past year, were more or less injured, or nearly destroyed. Of 

 course this is a serious danger for a collection, as the specimens lose their 

 value if the locality or the scientific name is lost. A new form of labels 

 had been chosen last year printed on excellent card paper. The stones 

 are kept in small square open boxes, the label is folded in the middle j 

 upon the lower half the stone is laid, to keep the label in place ; upon the 

 upturned half the locality and the name are written in order to afford an 

 easy view of the contents of the collection. Now, since last winter this 

 upper half has appeared to be scraped on both sides in such a manner 

 that the writing is injured and in some cases has disappeared. The lower 

 half of the label was similarly injured, so far as not covered by the stone ; 

 the under side of the lower half proved never to be injured, and was 

 apparently protected by the bottom of the box, to which it was pressed 



