600 Proceedings. 



Sir Walter Buller said that in England he had seen the first part of 

 the manuscript of the work on New Zealand entomology which Mr. 

 Hudson proposed bringing out, also plates, which were much admired. 

 On the whole, the work was highly spoken of, and he was quite sure it 

 would be a success, and a valuable contribution to our colonial literature. 



Mr. Travers added that the use of the spray-distributor, properly 

 charged, would be of great advantage in getting rid of these pests. They 

 could be kept working for a considerable time in the proper season. 



Mr. Hulke v.ould like Sir Walter Buller and other members of the 

 Society to assist him in urging the Government to subscribe for, say, a 

 hundred copies of Mr. Hudson's work for distribution in our schools. It 

 would be most valuable to both teachers and scholars. 



Mr. Hudson said that this would be a great help to him, as it was 

 not easy to get the required amount subscribed. He thanked the Pre- 

 sident and members for their complimentary remarks regarding his pro- 

 posed work. 



2. " On a New and Sensitive Barometer," by T. Wake- 

 lin, M.A. 



Abstract. 



The invention consisted of a long flexible indiarubber bag fixed half- 

 way down a tube. The tube is fixed, air-tight, in a box having a capacity 

 of a hundred times the tube, so that very slight variations of pressure 

 would cause a considerable movement of the closed end of the bag up or 

 down the tube, and enable registration of atmospheric disturbances to be 

 made, which neither the mercurial nor the aneroid barometer was 

 sensitive enough to show. 



The President said that, theoretically, Mr. Wakelin's idea was a good 

 one, but that indiarubber would not do for the moving part. He thought 

 it would be better to have a very light thin glass tube inserted, floating 

 in glycerine, contained in an annular reservoir in the external tube. 



3. " Note on the Breeding-habits of the European Sparrow 

 {Passer domestic us) in New Zealand," by T. W. Kirk, F.E.M.S., 

 F.L.S. {Transactions, p. 108.) 



Mr. Travers said that Mr. Kirk's views regarding the food of the sparrow 

 did not agree with those of naturalists in other countries. His experience 

 led him to believe that their principal food was insects. The Cicada 

 especially are caught in hundreds by them. It would be difficult to 

 ascertain, as suggested, by dissection whether they contain insect-food 

 or grain. If the increase were anything like what ilr. Kirk contends the 

 air would be full of these birds. The increase really depends on the 

 amount of food they get. That these birds are useful to the agriculturist 

 is beyond question. The increase in crops is in proportion to the spread 

 of the sparrow. The insects which used to swarm in the plains in the 

 South have now almost disappeared owing to the sparrow, and the grain 

 has increased. The caterpillars, once so numerous, are disappearing from 

 the same cause. In Hungary they made war against the sparrows, but 

 after a time they had to get them back again, so that they might pro- 

 tect the wheat from the insects. The sparrow was also a goad scavenger. 

 It was said that the sparrow destroyed the grape, but it turned out to be 

 the Zosterops, or the minah. The hawk mentioned as being attacked by 

 sparrows is the kind that never touches sparrows. He was an ardent 

 admirer of the sparrow, and he did not think we should grudge the small 

 amount of grain they consumed when they were in other waj-s so useful. 



Sir Walter Buller said he was prepared to accept his full share of the 

 responsibility for the introduction of tlie sparrow by the Wanganui Accli- 

 matization Society in 1866. Whilst fully admitting and deploring the 

 depredations committed by this bird on the settlers' croi)s at certain 



