6 RICE-PEST OF BRITISH BURMA. 



and 1 2th somites respectively. The stigmata of the 

 2nd, 3rd, and 4th abdominal somites only are clearly 

 discernible ; they are oval, pale brown, imperforate areae 

 with a raised ring-like rim. A few symmetrically ar- 

 ranged stiff setae spring from rimmed areae not unlike the 

 closed stigmata. They differ widely in appearance from 

 the soft and delicate structures now to be described. 

 The whole animal is covered with a perfect forest of soft 

 and delicate white filaments which, owing to the manner 

 in which they have been curled and twisted by the 

 action of the spirit, appear to be in a state of the wildest 

 confusion, but are in reality arranged in a most definite 

 and orderly manner. In the first place, the filaments are 

 arranged in little bundles or tufts ; that is to say, two, three, 

 or four of them are united at their bases to form a peduncle 

 or stalk which is continuous with the integument; rarely 

 a tuft is represented by a single filament. The tufts are 

 disposed in four longitudinal rows, extending nearly from 

 one end of the body to the other. Two of these rows 

 are nearer to the middle line of the back, but not to 

 one another, than they are to the other two, which 

 occupy the sides of the body. The former are placed 

 above the longitudinal line in which the stigmata or 

 spiracles lie, and are hence supraspiracular, while the 

 latter lying below this line may be distinguished as the 

 infraspiracular tufts. Moreover, a still closer examina- 

 tion reveals the fact that the infraspiracular tufts are not 

 all inserted on homologous parts, for, while some of them 

 are attached to the outer ends of the terga of the somites 

 to which they belong, others are sternal in position : we 

 may hence subdivide the infraspiracular rows of tufts 

 into a tergal and a sternal series. So that we have 

 two tergal series of tufts, one above and the other below 

 the spiracular line, with one sternal series, on each side of 

 the body. It is difficult, owing to the complex manner 



