150 



own rich experience. The descriptions are given as briefly and concisely 

 as possible and are free from technical terms. 



The introduction to the work is largely devoted to entomology, and 

 the chai)ters on influence of food, influence of climatic conditions, and 

 more especially that on the influence of natural enemies, are worth 

 reading. 



There is also in the introduction a general consideration of preventive 

 measures and direct remedies, while in the body of the book itself special 

 remedies or preventives are given with each species, or at least with 

 each group of species. The American reader will often be amazed at 

 the direct remedies recommended by Dr. Bos. On account of the cheaj)- 

 ness of labor in Europe, the most primitive remedy, viz, hand-picking, 

 can be successfully practiced against many insects where in America it 

 is ijractically out of the question. Many of our modern American reme- 

 dies, however, are overlooked ; for instance, the use of arsenical X)oisons 

 is nowhere recommended. London purple is not mentioned at all, and 

 Paris green only once (by name), in the introduction and incidentally in 

 reference to its use in America against the Colorado Potato beetle. The 

 kerosene emulsion is not mentioned. Equally strange is the absence 

 of any allusion to the improved spraying nozzles and pumps; in fact, 

 no spraying apparatus at all is mentioned except (p. 559) a "little 

 syringe" — j^robably an old-fashioned gardener's syringe — and a "thick 

 brush " with which the fluid is scattered over the plants. If the prog- 

 ress of American economic entomology had not been ignored thus en- 

 tirely. Dr. Bos would have been able in many instances to suggest safe 

 and effective remedies. The omission of hellebore as a well-established 

 remedy for various insects is also noticeable, and finally, we are sur- 

 prised that no mention is made of the improved insect lime which dis- 

 penses with the costly paper or tin bands (pp. 28, 29.) 



A useful index in which the animals are arranged according to the 

 alphabetical sequence of the host plants or host animals and a general 

 index of popular and scientific names (here we chance to note the omis- 

 sion of Uphestm and Hepialus) conclude the work. 



A GENERIC SYNOPSIS OF THE COCCID^. 



Mr. W. H. Ashmead has published in the current volume of the Trans- 

 actions of the American Entomological Society a generic synopsis ot 

 the subfamilies, tribes, and genera of the bark lice of the world, based 

 on the writings of Signoret, Targioni, Low, Maskell, Comstock, Atkin- 

 son, and others. He has divided the subfamily Coccinse into four tribes, 

 viz: Acanthococcini, Dactylopiini, Coccini, and Kermesini. The Leca- 

 niinae he divides into the following tribes: Signorettini, Pulvinariini, 

 Lecaniini, and Lecaniodiaspini. In this subfamily he adds a new genus, 

 Bernardia, but with no description beyond a brief entry in his tables, 

 and also with no indication of the type. We may state, however, that 

 he informs us that the genus was founded upon Lecaniwm olece Bernard, 



