THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 189 



their young against contingencies to which the insect- 

 piercing species are liable, must have at first been arrived at 

 with a consciousness of the object to be effected, but that they 

 have gradually become instinctive, and are now unconsciously 

 inherited from generation to generation." Thus the "increased 

 energy, intelligence, and adaptability," which he adduces in 

 the first instance as the *' basis" of such advances made with 

 a conscious object, have gradually lapsed into a retrograde 

 stage of degenerate unconsciousness of purpose, merging into 

 the more familiar phases of hereditary habit j although, as he 

 subjoins, "it is impossible to watch a wasp at work without 

 feeling that, with these inherited customs, or so-called instinct, 

 much individual effort also comes into play." We have yet 

 to wait for his ulterior conunents on the instincts of the 

 lioney-bee, which, by a parity of reasoning, must be considered 

 to emanate from conscious intellectual antecedents, since 

 degraded to unconscious inheritance. Meanwhile another 

 athlete, Dr. Anton Dohrn, has sprung up to contest the palm 

 in a new arena, having published a pamphlet wherein he 

 maintains the principle of universal degradation and retro- 

 gressive development, as opposed to, and entitled to supersede 

 that of, universal progress ! 



""Who shall decide wlieu doctors disagree?" 



February 2, 1876. 



Sir Sidney Smith Saunders, C.M.G., Vice-President, in the 

 chair. 



Habits of Cychrus cylindricolUs. — Mr. M'Lachlan directed 

 attention to an article, by M. Flaminio Baudi, in the ' Petites 

 Nouvelles Entomologiques,' respecting the habits of Cychrus 

 cylindricollis, which he had taken on Monte Codeno feeding 

 on the body of a snail (Helix frigida), into tlie shell of which 

 the beetle was enabled to thrust its head and long narrow 

 prothorax. Some interesting remarks were made by Mr. 

 Bates and others on the peculiar structure and habits of the 

 insect, which appeared to have been found only on a very 

 sterile portion of the plateau of the mountain, and in no 

 other ))art. 



Slaphyliniihe of ilie Amazon Valley. — A valuable paper 

 was communicated by Dr. D, Sharp, entitled "Contributions 

 to an Insect Fauna of the Amazon Valley — (Staphylinida;)." 



