\ a) 
meeting, so much resembled those of malignant pustule—a disease well- 
known to be conveyed by flies—that it would be important to ascertain 
whether the bite of the Argas was itself venomous or merely a vehicle for 
the conveyance of morbific matter. 
The Secretary read the following report of the committee appointed at 
the last meeting :— 
To the Council of the Entomological Society of London. 
GENTLEMEN,— We, the undersigned, appointed a Committee to consider 
a communication from the Colonial Office relative to the supposed occurrence 
of Phylloxera vastatrix upon the Vines in the Colony of Victoria, Australia, 
beg to present the following Report :— 
We have carefully read and considered the mass of evidence embodied 
in the ‘Report of the Select Committee of the Legislative Assembly of 
Victoria upon Phylloxera vastatrix,’ forwarded by the Colonial Office with 
their letter. 
A large mass of this evidence, both as regards the questions put to the 
parties examined and their answers thereto, have little or no bearing upon 
the subject. From the conflicting nature of the evidence, it is tolerably 
clear that more than one insect, or animals allied to insects, have been 
accused of being the actual Phyllowera. The question remains as to 
whether the pest actually exists in the colony. 
The majority of the witnesses examined refer especially to the presence 
on the bark or roots of the Victorian vines of minute yellowish or orange- 
coloured creatures. These might be Phylloxer@; on the other hand, they 
might be harmless Acari (mites), such as are always found on decaying 
vegetable matter; and indeed the evidence of Mr. Ritchie, and others, and 
the concluding sentence of paragraph 4 in the Report, rather favour the 
latter idea. 
We nowhere find in the evidence any clear indication that the nodules 
on the young rootlets of the vines, so characteristic of the presence of 
Phylloxera, and the primary cause of the damage occasioned to the vines 
by its attacks (the rootlets being rendered incapable of performing their 
functions), have been observed in Victoria; although a passing remark by 
Mr. Wallis (p. 29, 838) may refer thereto. ‘This is especially noticeable, 
seeing that such a condition is figured on Plate I., and is mentioned in the 
Report, paragraph 4. 
This brings us to the important question as to whether the figures on 
the plates (especially that of the rootlets on Plate I.) were taken from actual 
Victorian specimens or copied from other figures in some European or 
American work. If they were copied from the actual sketches taken by 
M. Boutan from the Geelong specimens mentioned in his letter printed as 
Appendix C, or from some other Australian source, we think there can be 
