32 



The room that attracted my attention most, after seeing the collection, was the room 

 used for the students or pupils as they are called, and where all the mounting, spreading, 

 packing takes place as well as addressing boxes, and shipping insects ordered from every 

 quarter of the world. 



It is like a bee-hive and no one has time for idling here. One student is taking out 

 specimens from papers and envelopes, another sorting and laying aside any that are diffi- 

 cult to determine (these are afterwards handed over to an experienced hand for determina- 

 tion). The third pupil is placing specimens in relaxing jars and glasses of wet sand. The 

 fourth and fifth are mounting and spreading and often patching and mending broken 

 specimens. The packing and shipping is done in the most orderly and business-like man- 

 ner, and by dusk everything is finished for the day. 



I noticed an improvement upon our relaxing tins and jars which may be worth 

 mentioning. Glass covers are used and the advantage is obvious, as one can see the 

 specimens through the glass. They are very much the shape of the glass dishes kept at 

 the railway stations in the restaurants for sandwiches, etc. 



The spreading is done rather difl'erently from what I have seen in England and the 

 United States in that very short pins are used for fastening down strips of paper over the 

 wings, and forceps are used entirely (and never the thumb and forefinger) for tightening 

 down the pins. Twenty specimens is considered a good hour's work of the smaller species 

 and more of the larger ones can be satisfactorily mounted and spread by a good pupil. 



Dr. Staudinger is engaged upon a gigantic work upon the Paleo-Arctic Fauna, which 

 he is most anxious to finish. 



At Berlin I saw Alex. Bau's collection and went twice to call upon Mr. Howarth but 

 was not successful in my endeavours to meet him or to examine his fine collection. In 

 Berlin I met Prof. Ramsay Wright, of the Toronto University, who was hard at work at 

 Prof. Koch's laboratories. He very kindly took me to several places of great interest to 

 a naturalist. 



Arrived at London, I first went to see Mr. Henley Grose-Smith's collection of diurnals 

 only. He had nearly doubled his collection since I last saw it in 1882. A splendid 

 addition of new things had just been added, collected by Mr. Woodford, in the Solomon 

 Islands. This collector underwent great hardships and evidenced his pluck by living for 

 18 months amongst the worst cannibals that are known in the islands of the Southern 

 Pacific Ocean. Mr. Woodford's collection has been of great assistance to scientists inter- 

 ested in the insects of these southern climes. 



Mr. Grose-Smith furnished me with a letter to Mr. Kirby, at the South Kensington 

 branch of the British Museum, and no one could have been kinder than was Mr. Kirby. 

 Always busy, he seems to be able to find a little time to devote to collectors who come to 

 see the collections. He went through the Coliadse with me and helped to clear up a num- 

 ber of doubtful species which I had upon my mind. 



Last of all, I visited the Insect House, at the Zoological Gardens, in Regent's Park, 

 and saw the breeding cages. A large number of North American diuruals, and all our 

 large moths are to be seen here in their different stages of metamorphoses. 



Europe, Asia and Africa are also well represented in this respect, and one is always 

 sure to find something new and interesting to repay a visit to Mr. Bartlett's Insect House, 

 at the "Zoo." 



A MICROSCOPICAL EXAMINATION OF AN UNEXPANDED WING 

 OF CALLOSAMIA PROMETHEA. 



BY J. ALSTON MOFFAT, CURATOR, ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF ONTARIO. 



In the July No. of that ably conducted and instructive English magazine. The Ento- 

 mologist's Record, the subject of wing expansion is discussed in its various aspects. 

 Amongst those taking part in it, Dr. Buckell remarks that, " as to expansion : the un- 

 expanded wing is a miniature of the expanded. Newman, at p. 14 of British ButterMes 

 quotes from Kirby and Spence to the effect that the two membranes of which the wing is 



