96 All Jials Entomological Society of America [Vol. IX, 



Of course the kinds of racks in which the material is kept and 

 the system of filing them should depend upon the individual 

 needs and conditions, but the essential system, that of having 

 a large outside container with a number of individual vials 

 therein, may be employed in almost any museum or laboratory. 



At Dallas it has been the practice to accession all material 

 before it is put away, each lot receiving an accession number. 

 The labels are made as brief as possible, usually only the name 

 of the species and accession number being given. When it is 

 desired to get more complete data the accession catalogue 

 (in card form) may be consulted. Our labels are made with 

 India ink. They are thoroughly dried by heat before using. 

 We have found it possible to save time in the future by writing 

 the accession number on both sides of each label. The method 

 of labelling, of course, is also subject to change according to 

 individual preference. As far as possible, the vials containing 

 material of a given species are placed in the containers in 

 numerical sequence. When time permits they may be arranged 

 in perfect numerical order, and the number of the container 

 (the series containing each species to begin with No. 1) as well 

 as the inclusive accession numbers of the material in each 

 inserted on the container label. 



For convenience sake we have found it advisable to divide 

 the entire alcoholic series into three parts, numbering these 

 series I, II and III. Series I contains all the material under the 

 accession catalogue which it is desired to keep; series II (the 

 "life history series") contains bred material which is designed 

 to illustrate all of the different stages of an insect or other form ; 

 series III is composed of specimens for exchange, or in other 

 words a duplicate series. 



I have recently observed a number of different systems for 

 arranging alcoholic material in different laboratories and 

 museums, and have heard several say they did not like the 

 double-tube system. In these cases, however, the containers 

 used were very little larger than the vials containing the speci- 

 mens, therefore each container was occupied by but a single 

 vial of specimens. This only tends to increase the volume of 

 the collection, does not facilitate refilling with alcohol, and the 

 containers do not hold enough alcohol to prevent frequent 

 fillings. I am of the opinion that if the double-container 

 system, as described above, is employed, it will be found to be 

 very free from objectionable points. 



