(5?U^^* 



PREFACE. 



-s^ 



Another volume has been completed and we have again to thank 

 CUV subsciibers and contributors for their excellent support during the 

 past year. There has been no special feature like the " century " 

 articles of the last volume, but the volume contains a large amount of 

 most important and useful entomological detail, which has, we believe, 

 kept it quite up to the level of its best traditions. 



The work of the assistant editors has been especially onerous this 

 year. The coleoptera section under Professor T. Hudson Beare and 

 Mr. H. St. J. K. Donisthorpe has been rather heavier than usual, and 

 Mr. M. Burr maintains well the interest of our orthopterists in the 

 work that is going on in their special branch of our subject. The help 

 of Dr. T. A. Chapman and Mr. L. B. Prout with the lepidoptera, has 

 again been of the utmost value to ourselves and our readers. 



Help in the production of the plates pulished Avith this volume is 

 gratefully acknowledged, we have to thank Dr. T. A. Chapman, the 

 Eev. A. M. Moss, the Hon. N. C. Rothschild, and Mr. DoUman. To the 

 latter our readers are indebted for the beautiful handpainted larva of 

 Dicranura bictiHpis, every copy of which was coloured by the a"tist 

 himself. 



Owing to an unfortunate affection of the eyes, from which Mr. G. 

 B. Routledge is suffering, extra help in the preparation of the Special 

 Index has had to be obtained. ]\Ir. H. J. Turner is helping Mr. 

 Routledge with the lepidoptera. Professor T. Hudson Beare is doing 

 the coleoptera, and Mr. M. Burr the orthoptera. Whilst regretting 

 exceedingly the necessity for obtaining further help, we are exceedingly 

 grateful to those who have so kindly offered their services. We trust 

 that Mr. Routledge, to whose kindness Ave have been indebted so long, 

 will soon recover from Avhat Ave hope is but a temporary disability. It 

 is hoped that the " Special Index" will be ready Avith the January 

 number. We regret to add that, Avhilst this has been passing through 

 the press, Miss E. Wells, Avho has for many years been responsible 

 for the " general index " of this magazine, and had only a few days 

 before completed that published Avith this number, died suddenly of 

 apoplexy on December 5th. 



We again ask for a supply of short notes and observations, Avhich 

 should in reality be not at all difficult to obtain. It Avould appear, 

 however, that such are really more rarely penned than one might 

 fairly expect. I may here point out that the compilation of really 

 good text-books must depend largely on an abundance of such notes 

 made by isolated Avorkers. These notes become of the highest 

 scientific importance Avhen collected together for the purposes of 

 generalisation. Similarly, notes on collecting — Avith dates, observ'ations 

 and localities — are exceedingly valuable. 



In conclusion we beg to tender our heartiest thanks to our sub- 

 scribers and contributors, and to everyone who has in any Avay contri- 

 buted to make the volume a success. 



