828 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 
the first volume of the ‘Entomological Transactions.’ That 
excellent entomological artist, the late Mr. Curtis, more 
recently gave some information respecting the genus; and 
Mr. Westwood, at p. 446 of the second volume of his 
‘Modern Classification,’ has a most interesting chapter on 
Cocci. This summer, dry and cold in an excessive degree, 
has been remarkable for its productiveness of scale-insects ; 
and I have received a great number of communications and 
inquiries respecting them. One correspondent, at Canterbury, 
who sends me a sample of whitethorn loaded with obese 
females, avers that the “ oldest inhabitant” had never seen 
anything of the kind before, a statement which, if correct, 
tends to prove that that venerated authority had not directed 
his attention to economic entomology, but cannot be regarded 
as sufficient evidence that scale-insects were unknown in 
Kent until the wretched summer of 1871. In reply to all 
enquiries on this subject, I cannot, perhaps, do better than 
cite the description given by MRusticus, which, though 
intended to apply only to the Coccus of the vine is equally 
applicable to many other species. I must, however, interpo- 
late some additional details, which I have acquired either 
from Mr. Westwood’s ‘ Modern Classification’ or from my own 
observation :—The Coccus, or scale-insect, comes from an 
egg, which is laid in the manner hereinafter described, and 
my acquaintance with it begins with its babyhood or the 
dawn of its independent career. I was assisted in my inves- 
tigations by my late friend Mr. Gratton, one of the most 
kind-hearted naturalists it has ever been my good fortune to 
meet with: he possessed an excellent microscope, which 
was always at my service under his own careful manipu- 
lation; and we spent hours together in examining the young 
of the scale-insect; we agreed on all subjects save one, and 
on that we agreed to differ. Mr. Gratton regarded animal 
life created to reveal the powers of his microscope, or, as he 
expressed it, to “test” the powers of his microscope; I 
believed his microscope created to reveal the wonders of 
animal life. We were perpetually delighting in the same 
discovery ; we were perpetually thinking, and often exclaim- 
ing simultaneously: “ What an excellent microscope ;” “ What 
a wonderful object.” But | am losing sight of the infant 
Coccus, in the vivid recollection of the genial man who first 
