THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 131 



The address of the president, Dr. Dixon, was exceedingly gratifying 

 to entomologists, by reason of his laying some stress on the fact that 

 among the original founders of the academy was Thomas Say, the father 

 of American entomology. In his mention of the services many of the 

 former members of the academy had made to science, he again spoke of 

 Thomas Say, who went out with the Long Expedition to the Rocky 

 Mountains, in 1819. This was followed by expressions of appreciation 

 of the later works of Le Conte, Horn, Cresson and others. He told of 

 the siz-î and importance of some of the special collections, mentioning 

 among others the collection of insects which now numbers 1,000,000 

 specimens and has world-wide renown. 



Doctor Dixon showed the practical use of the work of the academy, 

 and the real value to people and Government in the study of insect life ; 

 the now known cause of many preventable diseases, among them yellow 

 fever, an outbreak of which was promptly suppressed in New Orleans, 

 La., and malaria, which have been banished from Cuba and the Panama 

 Canal section. He gave some figures showing the immense damage done to 

 crops by insect life, and showed the money loss in this field, which economic 

 entomology is trying to correct, to be more than $1,000,000,000 a year. 



There were but two papers presented relating exclusively to insects. 

 The first by Henry Skinner, M.D., D.Sc, on "Mimicry in Butterflies." 



Dr. Skinner's long familiarity with these insects rendered his paper 

 of unusual interest and value. First calling attention to the many cases 

 of deceptive resemblance among butterflies, and the very much that had 

 been written on protective mimicry, both in this and other countries, he 

 called attention to the fact that actual observations on the feeding of 

 birds on butterflies were almost entirely lacking here in America, so much 

 so that at the present time protective mimicry among butterflies must be 

 admitted to be far more fancied than real, and, that the proof justly 

 demanded by science was here conspicuously lacking. The doctor rested 

 his case on the scientific as well as legal objection of "not proven." The 

 second paper, by Mr. Jas. A. G. ReKn, dealt with "The Orthopterological 

 Inhabitants of the Sonoran Creosote Bush" throughout the country along 

 the Mexican border so rich in new and unique species of insects. It was 

 of much interest not only relative to Orthoptera but also from a faunal 

 point of view. 



Prof. Webster's Address. 



Members of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia : 



A very pleasing duty has devolved upon me as an honourary member 

 of the Entomological Society of Ontario, in having been delegated to 



