8 FAMILIAR WILD FLOWERS. 



butterflies and moths, while its foliage finds their larvae or 

 caterpillars welcome provender. Should any of our 

 readers find on the sallows about the beginning of June 

 a pale green caterpillar having various yellow lines and 

 stripes on each side, they will do well to take it home 

 and endeavour to rear it. It is the larva of the purple 

 emperor butterfly, the Apatura Iris of the entomologist, 

 and one of our most beautiful species, and one which 

 may best be obtained by rearing, as it is by no means 

 an easy insect to capture on the wing. 



In the well-known lines of Spenser, dealing with the 

 economic uses of many of our trees, we find " the birch for 

 shafts, the sallow for the mill/' It is much less liable 

 to split on sudden strain than many other woods, and is 

 therefore used in mill-work and various rustic purposes 

 where this peculiar property renders it specially suitable. 





