294 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



Recreations of a Country Doctor concerning Sugaring. 

 By H. W. LiVETT, M.D. 



It was about the year 1830 that I met with and was 

 enchanted by Rennie's books in the Library of Entertaining 

 Knowledge, — ' Insect Transformations,' &c. From that time 

 to the present (with, I am sorry to say, an Jtiatus of some 

 twenty years) I have been a collector, though still but a 

 " discipulus," as quaint old Izaak Walton says. One reason 

 why I have not attained the rank of "niagister" may be 

 because I have not known anyone near of kindred taste with 

 whom I could work and learn ; but the principal hindrance 

 has been my limited opportunities, owing to the engrossing 

 nature of my profession, — one which of necessity occupies 

 nearly all one's lime, often Sundays as well as working-days. 



Willi what envy have I read from time to time of expedi- 

 tions to the New Forest or other favoured localities, with the 

 long lists of consequent captures; of the "happy hunting- 

 grounds," where larva) of the most desirable species would 

 tumble into your umbrella at each tap of the beating-stick ; 

 or where the graceful Camilla might be seen " skimming 

 lightly o'er the plain;" where C. Edusa and Hyale might 

 congregate ; or even the great emperor himself might 

 royally disport, delighting the eye and quickening the pulse 

 of the would-be captor ! But to me — occupied most of the 

 day, and of necessity at home when not so occupied, with 

 holidays very few and far between — such delights were only 

 to be read of and dreamt about, not to be enjoyed. Doubt- 

 less there must be many an aspirant to entomological know- 

 ledge with like limited opportunities; — for the encouragement 

 of such I write this paper. 



1 live in a small cily, — a rus in urhe, certainly, — and in 

 which most of the private houses have gardens attached: my 

 own is a fairly good one, and in it 1 have taken many species, 

 some rare. In 1868 we took eight specimens of S. Convolvuli, 

 hovering over a small bed of petunias less than three feet in 

 diameter ; and all of which specimens, I may note by the 

 way, were seen at exactly the same time on the five or six 

 evenings they appeared, tv.e. just at twilight. I took in 1872 

 a specimen — the only one 1 ever saw — of D. rubiginea, on 

 the berries of a yew on the lawn. C. sponsa and G. erythro- 

 cephala — the last an especial great take — fell victims to their 



