a ala 
himself, but are of little use to others; and loss of memory, 
or the death of the owner, may thus render valueless speci- 
mens which if fully labelled at first might have been of the 
greatest scientific value. 
The reverence which has usually been shown to so-called 
type-specimens is, however, in my opinion, often entirely 
misplaced, for unless a type is really typical, which in variable 
species it often is not, and unless it is in sufficiently good 
condition to show its characters perfectly, it may only, and 
often does only, tend to obscure and confuse. There are 
many types in public and private collections which, from a 
scientific point of view, would be far better destroyed, and the 
names founded on them ignored; but the love of describing 
is so great in some minds that we cannot hope to abolish the 
practice of naming imperfect or insufficient specimens. All 
we can do is to refuse to recognise those guilty of such 
practices as deserving of anything but reprobation. 
I have been led to make these remarks from personal expe- 
rience of the difficulty, and even impossibility, of following the 
descriptions or recognising the characters of many so-called 
species from North America, where a great deal still remains 
to be done in working at the distribution, variation, and 
classification of many common species. In the United 
States entomologists seem to be even more behind botanists 
and ornithologists than in other countries, for, though two 
of the best, if not the two very best, collectors now living are 
Americans, there are not enough entomologists of leisure, 
means, and ability to have made much impression on the 
task; and even in the most popular branch of the subject, 
namely, Lepidoptera, there does not as yet exist a single 
handbook which will help a student to identify his captures 
in the south or west. Having spent parts of two summers 
most delightfully in collecting in the United States, I hope to 
return to this subject at a later period, and will not now 
enlarge upon it. 
Among the names of those Fellows of the Society and 
others who have died during the past year, there are, I am 
glad to say, none who will be as much missed at our meetings 
