HENRY SKINNER. ' 175 



place to find ' skippers ' and they were unusually abundant. Pylades 

 and bathy litis were extremely plentiful. Strolling among them my 

 attention was arrested by one unusually black and rich looking ; I 

 captured it and saw another one, but thinking it was only a fresher 

 specimen than usual, and being quite green in the business I made no 

 special effort to secure it and so passed on. Next morning when I 

 came to spread it, I found that I had something quite new to me. I 

 do not remember looking for more of them that season. I kept it 

 apart for several years. Prof. Saunders was looking over my collec- 

 tion for the first time, and I directed his attention to it ; he said he had 

 never seen anything like it ; then I began to prize it. Some time after 

 that I sent it to Mr. Edwards who sent me word it was new, making 

 inquiry about it and wanting to retain it telling me to keep a good 

 lookout in the same locality at the same time of year for more, which 

 I did but without success. I can after this lapse of time only give my 

 impressions of it. To the practised eye, it was conspicuously distinct 

 from pylades by its deeper black and richer color ; also the smallness 

 of the spots the most of them being quite inconspicuous, mere points ; 

 indeed I did not know it had so many until I read of them in Lintner's 

 description. The ground on which I found it is a flat surrounded on 

 three sides by hills, and marsh on the other. Clumps of witch-hazel 

 with open spaces, grass, weeds and ox-eye daises in season were abun- 

 dant. It was an excellent hunting ground for many things, but later it 

 was turned into a cow pasture which altered its character greatly. I 

 watched for others for years, and did think it strange that I did not 

 see any more of them. There was but one other collector in that 

 locality and I know he never took any." 



Dr. W. J. Holland sends the following in regard to it : 

 "The specimen of E. electra has been carefully examined by me 

 and compared with its congeners. The tips of the antennae are, as 

 Lintner says of the specimen, partly wanting but the tips of the palpi 

 are all right. There is enough, however, to make it plain that the insect 

 is congeneric with bathyllus and pylades and not with Nisoyiiades 

 juvenalis. It is a very well marked and distinct species. It differs 

 wholly from the others of the group in which it belongs in general 

 aspect, and would be detected at a glance as different from any of 

 them." 



Dr. Holland kindly sent me a drawing of the species. I 

 have no opinion to offer in regard to it and have given all 

 the information about it in my possession. Time alone will 

 tell whether this is a valid species or only an aberration. 



Habitat. — Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Early stages un- 

 known. 



TRANS. AM. ENT. SOC, XXXVII. 



