SOCIETIES. 45 



the species by means of such a guide. I am sure if this had been the 

 case I should, myself, have been much better able to distinguish a 

 species than I am at present. I recommend all young beginners to 

 make use of Stainton's Afafiual ; rw^ko. yourselves thoroughly conversant 

 with all his fixed rules and you will find it facilitate you as much in the 

 determination of a species as knowing the axioms of Euclid helps you 

 with his propositions ; however, there was no Stainton's Manual at the 

 time I mention, nor were there any books on the subject with the 

 exception of two volumes of the Naturalist' s Library, one on Butterflies 

 and one on Moths, and Rennie's Conspectus of Butterflies and Moths, 

 that were at all within the reach of schoolboys, other books being far 

 too expensive. I have brought with me for your inspection to-night, 

 the copy of Rennie's Conspectus I used as a schoolboy. By the grand 

 way in which it is bound, it will appear that it has been but little used ; 

 it is, however, the second copy I possessed, as the first was quite worn 

 out by perusal. The grand binding of the present is in consequence 

 of having it recently re-bound as a much valued treasure. Now, for a 

 few minutes, it may be interesting to briefly review its contents. The 

 Diurnals number io8, but of these 24 are recorded as British on 

 doubtful authority, and all of them have since been expunged. Twelve 

 are mentioned as in all probability varieties, and these since have all 

 proved only such. In the genus Pieris, for instance, or as Rennie 

 calls it, Pontia, he numbers seven species, notwithstanding he does not 

 include P. cratcegi and P. daplidice, the former of which he places in 

 a genus by itself, being the only British representative of his genus 

 Pieris, whilst our P. daplidice he includes in a genus Mancipium. As 

 without these two species we now recognize only three in this genus, 

 viz. : — P. Orassiae, P. rapce and P. napi, it may be interesting to 

 investigate how he arrives at the seven. He does this, by including in 

 his genus Pontia, P. chariclea, a variety of P. brassicce ; P. metra, a 

 variety of P. rapce ; P. napcea; and P. sabellicce, both varieties of P. napi; 

 deducting, then, these 24 doubtful ones, and the 12 varieties which 

 were merely so, the list of 1832 consisted of 72 species. We now, as 

 you are aware, acknowledge only 67, with the addition of the new 

 Hesperia lineola, having dispensed with Cynthia hanipstediensis (figured 

 in Humphrey and Westwood's " British Butterflies "), also Hipparchia 

 ligea, H. hero, Tliecla spini, Lycana chryseis, and Z. virgaurece. It 

 would be interesting to make further similar comparisons, but I must 

 content myself with a few hurried remarks. Zygcena mcliloti is re- 

 corded of rare occurrence in Surrey, Amongst the Sphingid?e we find 

 Sphinx pinastri recorded from Scotland, near Edinburgh, also from 

 Sussex, DeilepJiila euphorbia:, Sesia astliformis, but of course neither 6". 

 philatithiformis nor S. scolicefor/nis. It is interesting to note how many of 

 the NocTU^, now quite common, since the method of attracting them by 

 sugar has become known, are mentioned as rare or very rare as Noctua 

 trianguluni, N. f estiva, Orthosia macilenta, Tceniocampa nmnda, O. 

 ypsilon, A?ichocelis litura, A. pistacina, Leucania lithargyria, Luperina 

 testacea, Hadena adusta, Catocala promissa, C. sponsa, etc. It 

 seems now strange to write about times before sugaring was known, 

 and the only method to take some of the Nocture was to ca]:)ture 

 them at dusk on the wing, or to find an odd specimen at rest on an 

 old tree or paling. Searching such was an important feature in the 



