62 Dr. G. B. Longstaff's Notes on the Butterflies 



interested me if possible even more, I mean the multitude, 

 the variety, and above all the beauty of the butterflies. 

 The first sight of such a thing as the big Hypolimnas 

 holina, L., black flashing with violet-blue, excited an emotion 

 better imagined than described. At all events, the 

 creatures took me fairly by storm : collect I must ! 



The resources of the bazar at Simla oidy produced a 

 child's butterfly-net, a mere toy, scarce twelve inches in 

 diameter and of a pale yellow colour ! Armed with this 

 and a tin cigarette-box filled with triangular envelopes I 

 took the field. To this scanty equipment was shortly 

 added a cyanide bottle. It was two months before the 

 toy-net was superseded by an umbrella-net from Watkins 

 and Doncaster. This last is a very convenient weapon for 

 use in towns, or when travelling or sight-seeing. It is 

 inconspicuous when rolled up, but can be quickly brought 

 into action ; it is however inadequate for serious work. In 

 Calcutta I purchased a large Y-net with jointed canes, 

 and had it fitted to the end of a landing-net stick that was 

 made in two pieces that were six feet long when joined. 

 A fair-sized net is required for large and swift butterflies, 

 while for the many that habitually fly high and settle far 

 from the ground, six feet is none too long a stick, though 

 in narrow woodland paths it will be found unwieldy. 

 Another time I should travel with a jointed stick of three 

 segments, each three feet long. I may here add that 

 mosquito netting is far more serviceable than leno, owing 

 to its superior power of resistance to thorns of all sorts. 



Mr. Otto Moller, of Darjiling, told me that he found 

 it best to pinch all butterflies, even the smallest, but I 

 found that Blues and Skippers were best " bottled." No 

 doubt it would have been better to pin many moths, but 

 my things were all enveloped in the way usual for butter- 

 flies, and the dates, localities, and any remarks that sug- 

 gested themselves were inscribed upon the papers. [These 

 data are still attached to the specimens.] Since getting 

 back to England the insects have been serially numbered, 

 and the data copied into a note-book. On another 

 journey I should number the insects at the time, and 

 while putting the more important data on the papers as 

 before, copy these, amplified where necessary, into a book. 

 This would, I am quite sure, save much time and result 

 in a more complete record. 



The insects were sent to England from time to time 



