225 



because it is so difficult to catch. It frequents the tops of the highest trees 

 iu the midiUe of woods, and enthusiasts are said to hunt for it with butterSy 

 nets on poles 40 feet loug ! Its caterpillar, too, which is pale green, is very 

 difficult to find. It has a wide range, however, and is not therefore probably 

 so rare in nature as it is in ordinary collections. 



The " Wood White " (Leucophasia sinapis), by no means a common 

 butterfly, Mr. Purchas was lucky enough to capture one fine morning on 

 Penyard hill, near Ross. Then there was the "Scotch argus" (Erebia 

 blandina) wth eyes on its wings — (a representation, by the way, common to 

 many butterflies). It was not a Herefordshire specimen, of course. It is said 

 to occur sometimes in the northern counties of England, but its true home is 

 in Scotland. Here it is not very uncommon, and hVindieds of them may 

 sometimes be seen flitting about in the sunshine on the thistles beneath the 

 columnar trap rooks in the Queen's Park, called "Sampson's Ribs." 



Close to this also was the "small ringlet" butterfly {Erebia cassiope), 

 also rare and confined to the northern counties. Then there were many choice 

 varieties of Polyommatus (or many-eyed) tribe, the "Clifden blue" (Lyccena 

 Adonis) whose wings present a most lovely, shining, silvery azure blue, the 

 most splendid of all the British blues; the rare "Mazarine blue" (L. acis); 

 "the silver studded blue," (L. cegon) the "large blue" (L. avion) very 

 fine and very rare, and several others. There was the " Brown Hair-streak " 

 (Thecia Betula), and the still more rare "Black Hair-streak" (Thecla Pruni) ; 

 many rare FritiUarys, Argynnis Lathonia, Adippe, Aglaja, and Selene, 

 several uncommon Skippers Hesperia Paniscus, comma, and lincea, &c., &c. 

 The completeness of the collection may be judged from the presence of these 

 varieties amongst the butterflies. The other classes of the Lepidoptera 

 presented also numerous rareties, which would delight the eyes of an Ento- 

 mologist. The list is too long to attempt now. We can only say, what we 

 feel sure is correct, that Mr. Purchas would be happy at any time to show 

 his collection to any lovers of the science if they would call at his residence 

 in Ross. 



The time was now drawing to a close, and although Mr. Blashill 

 had prepared all the illustrations for his paper on "Variations in the 

 water Ranunculi, " there was no time to rea.d it. It was, therefore, 

 postponed for a future meeting. A paper on " Herefordshire Yew Trees," 

 by the Rev. Thomas Woodhouse, M.A., of Hay, was also postponed. 

 So finished a very pleasant meeting, and the committee must have felt, when 

 they got home, much as the farmer did when he innocently said, as soon as 

 he had got in his own hay, " What a blessing for the country a good 

 day's rain would be." 



