42 THE ENTOMOLOGIS'. 
obscured by its melanism. I was disposed to hold it a var. of 
satyrata, to which species it came very near to some of our 
southern forms; but when I showed my series at the South 
London, this idea did not find favour, and it occurred to me that 
the northern forms of satyrata varied in another direction. I 
was convinced of my error. One gentleman (Mr. Tutt) boldly 
stated it was only virgaureata, and that when they were first 
sent out by the Paisley collectors they were sent with typical 
virgaureata ; but, finding they were wanted in the south, they 
now sent out only the selected melanic form. After this state- 
ment I wrote to Mr. Stewart for information. Asking him if they 
did get virgaureata, and if the insects sent to me were selected, 
Mr. Stewart replied as follows:—‘‘I never heard of or took 
Eupithecia virgaureata here, and its food-plant, the golden-rod, I 
have only found once, and that many miles from where we take © 
the ‘‘ pug.” I know the plant well, as I am tolerably well up in 
Botany, having a much finer collection of plants than insects. 
The specimens sent you were not selected, but just our usual 
form ; when taken freshly emerged they are a beautiful glossy 
erey-black, some a trifle darker than others, but as a rule they 
vary very little. I doubt Mr. Tutt is making a mistake when he 
says he got typical virgaureata from Paisley; I have only five 
virgaureata, and they came from your side of the border.” 
Feeling perfectly convinced that it was in no way allied to 
virgaureata, | again most closely examined them, and at last got 
a key-note ; and that is the hind marginal whitish line apparent 
in some of the specimens, and tolerably clear, but in others much 
obscured. When this line was contrasted to the same line in 
E. castigata, it was evident it was to this species that the Paisley 
‘“‘pug”’ belonged. I reset all to same model, for convenience of 
examination, and with a series of each, arranged in parallel 
columns of satyrata, the Paisley “‘pug,” and virgaureata, it was 
clear that the puzzle was unravelled. The discoidal spot and 
the hind marginal very zigzag whitish line, when present, is 
distinctly shown on all the wings, both above and beneath; the 
neuration and contour of castigata and the Paisley insect are 
identical. That being so, I had no hesitation to re-exhibit them 
under their proper name at the South London Entomological 
Society on the 14th inst. 
My friend Mr. C. G. Barrett was disposed to accept my deter- 
mination, but wished an opportunity of a daylight examination, 
and to that end he had my series to take home; and I may now 
say that Mr. Barrett agrees with me absolutely that the Paisley 
insect 1s Hupithecta castigata var. I will not give ita varictal 
name, as, to my way of thinking, we have far too many named 
varieties already. 
Greenwich, Jan. 20, 1892, 
