PREFACE TO VOL. X. 



On the completion of our tenth volume we again tender our heartiest 

 thanks to our subscribers and contributors. 



To the latter we are exceedingly obliged for the great number of 

 communications sent, and if we have sometimes been obliged to delay 

 articles, it is simply because we have had so much material on hand 

 that space has been lacking for their immediate publication. Our own 

 papers, on the " Migration and Dispersal of Insects," have on this 

 account Ijeen delayed, and we have other interesting articles now 

 standing over from some of our best entomologists Mrs. M. de B. 

 MchoU, Mr. J. J. Walker, F.L.S., F.E.S., Dr. T. A. Chapman, F.Z.iS., 

 F.E.S., Professor Enzio Renter, Ph.D., F.E.S., and others. Tliese articles 

 we hope to publish early in the New Year. 



During the past year we have preferred to occupy the space pre- 

 viously taken up by the reports of societies (which are sometimes found 

 in at least half-a-dozen magazines) with original articles. Cousideriug 

 that all the best Societies print their reports in their Froceediuijs, and 

 we add as a " Current Note" any point of more than usual mtercst 

 that occurs at the meetings, this practice will be continued. It gives 

 us a page or two each month for " Practical Hints " and other details 

 that seem to be appreciated. 



Twelve months ago we had the pleasm-e of announcing that 

 Mr. Horace St. John K. Donisthorpe, F.Z.S., F.E.S., would undertake 

 the editing of all notes on Coleoptera submitted to us. For the vast 

 improvement in this section of the magazine our thanks to Mr. 

 Donisthorpe are entirely due. We have now to chronicle another 

 addition to the editorial staff, Mr. M. Burr, F.Z.S., F.E.S., having 

 kindly undertaken to edit auy notes on the "Orthoptera" that 

 may be submitted for publication. The mainteuance of a per- 

 manent section of the magazine for this order, under so capable and 

 energetic a specialist, is a matter of great gratification to us, and will, 

 I doubt not, be fully appreciated by our readers. 



We have already on hand a large number of "Practical Hints" 

 for publication in the next volume. This feature of the magazine will, 

 therefore, be maintained. It is one, however, in which the Editor 

 would be glad of outside help. We should also be pleased to receive 

 "Current Notes," especially important items of entomological news 

 gleaned from foreign sources, or relating to British work. 



Our thanks are again due to Mr. G. B. Routledge, F.E.S., who has 

 undertaken, for the fifth time, the preparation of the /Special Index, 

 To those who, like ourselves, sometimes have to searcli laboriously 

 page by page the old magazines for almost every reference requii-ed, 

 owing to the uselessness of the Indexes that then had to sufiiee, an 

 Index of this kind is invaluable. 



Evidently the time is arriving when each of our entomological 

 magazines will have its Special Index fairly complete, and even at the 

 expense of reduciug the General Index to vanishing point and occupying 

 a large part of the last number of each volume, the change will be 

 welcomed. We shall, however, continue to publish the General Index 

 as hithertowiththelastnumberof the volume, and, separately, a Special 

 Index that contains every reference to species, etc., in the volume. 



