THE MUSEUM. 



i8i 



ics of insects or tlieir structure. I 

 have refraineil from doing so, as there 

 are so many good books now publish- 

 ed that will give you so much more 

 information than I could in the space 

 at my disposal. I will only say in 

 closing that there is a large tield open 

 for anyone who sees fit to work. The 

 science is advancing year by year and 

 one by one the schools and colleges 

 are placing it in their curricula until 

 there is now hardly a state in the 

 Union which has not her experiment 

 station, where the entomologist comes 

 very near reigning supreme. Of the 

 delights of entomology it is not neces- 

 sary to dwell at length upon more 

 than I have already. Anyone will tell 

 you who has dabbled in it that there 

 is much learning and great pleasure to 

 be derived from an intelligent study of 

 it. 



It is not recjuired of you to take 

 long trips away from town or your 

 business. Observe the glories of your 

 own back yard. There is as much 

 more to be learned in the city limits 

 as is now already known. Remember 

 what Gilbert White of Selborne said, 

 "That locality is the richest that is 

 the most observed." 



Perhaps the "bugs" will be disgust- 

 ing to you at first, but stick to it and 

 I will guarantee you will come to ad- 

 mire them for their beauty, graceful 

 forms and wonderful transformations 

 and last but not least, for their intel- 

 ligence. Become as eager to get a 

 new specimen as a "camera fiend" is 

 to get a new picture, which is certain- 

 ly saying a good deal. 



"Go to the ant, thou sluggard; ob- 

 serve its wass and be wise." 



A Pleasure Trip on the Atlantic 

 Goast. 



On July i6th last, the writer started 

 on a pleasure trip to the Beach of the 

 Atlantic. Although at various times 

 during the past ten years, we had 

 caught merely a glimpse of salt water, 

 it had never been our privilege to stop 

 more than a few hours at the seaside. 



ami we started out on this trip with 

 high hopes of a good time which were 

 eventually fully realized. 



Our ticket read via New York Cen- 

 tral the great four track road to Al- 

 bany, thence by Boston and Albany 

 R. R. to South Framingham. Here 

 we were to change cars and go south 

 to New [Bedford, where the steamer 

 would be in waiting to take us along 

 the coast, stopping at Wood's Holl, 

 and thence to Cottage City, and Ed- 

 gartown on Martha's Vineyard Island 



Leaving home at lo p. m. we ar- 

 ri\ed in Albany just as the electric 

 lights begin to grow dim, with the 

 faint streaks of morning. As we look 

 out of the sleeper window to the east 

 we see what appear to be stars shin- 

 ing out brightly in the heavens, but 

 before we leave Albany we discover 

 they are really electric lights on the 

 very top of the distant hills We have 

 now left the beautiful level country of 

 the Mohawk \'alley, and for some 

 hours will ride through as hilly a coun- 

 try as one would wish to see. Leav- 

 ing Albany about 4 a. m. it has begun 

 to grow light and a fine view of the 

 country is enjoyed until we get to our 

 ne.\t stop at Pittsfield. It is now fully 

 light and everybody is astir. The 

 mammoth chimneys are rolling forth 

 their black smoke ready for the busi- 

 ness of another day. 



Leaving Pittsfield the ride to Spring- 

 field, the capital of the state, is 

 through one succession of hills. And 

 such hills! One can scarcely see the 

 top. Some are covered with foresr, 

 others hava a sprinkling of grass. 

 Now and then one sees a tiny house 

 down in the valley, apparently lost 

 among the mammoth piles of dirt and 

 rock, which nature has left here in 

 such utter profusion. The road-bed 

 we arc traveling over is very smooth 

 and firm, being in many places solid 

 rock. The track is necessarily very 

 crooked, and occasionally the i)nilders 

 were obliged to cut through a hill, be- 

 ing unable to go around it easily. 

 As we wind around among the hills, 



