INTRODUCTION. liii 



with a layer of damp sand at the bottom, for a few hours or 

 days. They must, however, be watched, and set as soon as 

 they are sufficiently limp. If not quite relaxed, the wings will 

 be liable to break, or to slip out of position afterwards ; but if 

 left too long in the relaxing jar, the insects will become rotten 

 or mouldy. 



Setting-boards are made of wood, with a groove down the 

 middle, lined with cork, and proportioned in depth to the 

 height at which it is proposed to set the insect. The sides 

 are also covered with cork, but this is unnecessary when 

 insects are set with threads. According to the old English 

 fashion of setting, the groove was very shallow, and the sides 

 of the setting-board were sloping, so that the insect was close 

 to the paper of the cabinet, and the wings sloped over, and 

 nearly touched it, on each side. But many collectors now 

 prefer the Continental method, in which the insect is raised 

 half an inch or more from the surface of the drawer, and 

 the wings are spread out quite flat on each side. In setting 

 an insect, the pin is fixed in the centre of the groove, and the 

 wings, antennae, and legs are placed in as natural a position as 

 possible, with the aid of a needle, great care being taken not 

 to pierce or tear the wings, or to break the antennce. They 

 are then secured in their places by " braces," or long tapering- 

 strips of paper or cardboard, with pins thrust through the 

 broader end ; or a thread may be wound over the wings, from 

 end to end of the setting-board. This, however, requires both 

 neatness and practice to do it well, or it is liable to rub off the 

 scales in lines. 



Insects are generally kept in store-boxes or cabinets. Store 

 boxes may be of any convenient size, and are made like back- 

 gammon boards, and corked within on both sides. Cabinets 

 are made to contain any required number of drawers, arranged 

 in a single or double tier, and it is of great inportance that all 



