764 



at Practical 



fitting into a corresponding groove in the 

 one opposite, so as to exclude dust and mites; 

 a piece of stout linen cloth is glued on the 

 back to assist the little hinges, and the sides 

 are secured by a pair of hooks and staples. 

 The ordering of a cabinet is a very serious 

 matter. ' Ingpen's Instructions for collect- 

 ting Insects,' price 3s. 6d., should be con- 

 sulted for this and all that relates to the 

 whole subject of which it treats ; and even 

 after studying this work, the entomologist 

 should seek the advice of some experienced 

 friend, and the workshop of a clever trades- 

 man. Order a quantity of rough cork ; glue 

 it to a board, and send it to be cut up 

 into slices, one quarter of an inch thick, 

 at some saw-mill where veneers are cut ; 

 then smooth down the surface of the slices 

 with a large wood file, and polish with 

 pumice-stone from a painter's shop : a sheet 

 of paper is then accurately fitted into the 

 bottom of the box, and the cork cut to the 

 pattern, and glued into its place, where it is 

 secured by a few wire nails and heavy 

 weights, equally distributed, till the glue is 

 thoroughly dry. Cut a sheet of stone-coloured 

 paper to the dimensions requisite for cover- 

 ing the cork ; cover the former with flour 

 paste on the under side, and allow it to be 

 well saturated before laying it down ; smooth 

 its surface with a cloth, and dry in a cool 

 place. Previous to pasting down the paper, 

 fill up all the holes in the cork with a com- 

 position of equal parts of tallow, resin, and 

 bees'-wax ; this may be melted on a large 

 scale in an iron spoon, such as plumbers use, 

 and poured into a box to the depth of one 

 quarter of an inch ; it is an economical sub- 

 stitute for cork, though not equal to it. The 

 author has seen American pine- wood so very 

 soft, that a stout insect-pin might be stuck 

 into it, without being bent, and it possessed 



I considerable elasticity for retaining the pin; 

 , but the best substitute for cork with which 

 he is acquainted is ' Baldwin's Improved 

 Elastic Gun Wadding,' No. 2., which can 

 be purchased from any gun-maker at 9d. per 

 sheet. Soak it in water for eighteen hours, 

 and when thoroughly dry, glue it into the 

 box, and lay heavy weights over it for two 

 days or so, and then cover it with paper : 

 but the most economical method of prepar- 

 ing an insect store-box which can be devised 

 is, to cover the bottom with paper, and glue 

 small chips of cork, about a quarter of an 

 inch thick and of sufficient size merely to 

 hold the point of a pin. To cut cork, the 

 knife or saw should be wiped with a cloth 

 moistened with oil ; but as oil spoils the 

 paper, its injurious effects may be neutralized 

 by the application of a little spirit of tur- 

 pentine. Where it is inconvenient to send 

 cork in its rough state to the saw-mill, it 

 should be cut into strips about three inches 

 broad ; fix them in a vice, and with a fine 

 cabinet maker's saw, cut them into slices 

 about a quarter of an inch thick ; glue each 

 piece, worst side down, on a sheet of brown 

 paper of the required dimensions laid on a 

 board, and drive a few wire nails through 

 each piece, to keep all firm until the glue be 

 dried ; reduce all irregularities with the file, 

 and polish with pumice-stone. 



To prepare glue for use, break the cake 

 into small pieces, and soak for twenty-four 

 hours in cold water; pour off as much of the 

 water as you think will leave sufficient to 

 make a solution of glue strong enough for 

 your purpose ; boil over a brisk fire, stirring 

 frequently. 



GENERAL REMARKS ON COLLECTING IN- 

 SECTS. Insects are always most abundant in 

 that district which enjoys a warm, equable 

 temperature and a dry and kindly soil ; but 

 the greatest variety will ever be found in that 

 which possesses a great diversity of soil, and 

 consequently a rich flora. In the woods, the 

 oak, elm, poplar, lime, willow, birch, and 

 hazle, and the sallow and Scotch fir when in 

 flower, are the most prolific trees ; nor must 

 the lichens, which clothe the trunk of the 

 old tree, and the lowly mosses, which cluster 

 at its root, be forgotten. The agarics and 

 fungi which gladden our eyes in the late 

 autumnal walk, and the stony-hearted 

 Fungus Bokti, which foretels the destruction 

 of the proudest member of the forest, each 

 and all yield a rich harvest to the collector. 

 Hedgerows, not the gaunt mathematical 

 hedges of Scotland, but the broad free-grow- 

 ing hedges of "merrie England," with their 

 multifarious denizens, the hawthorn, the 

 sloe, and the rambling woodbine ; hedge 

 banks, ditch banks, forest glades, commons, 

 lanes, heaths, and marshes covered with long 

 waving grass, rank vegetation, and gaudy 

 wild flowers ; and amongst the latter, the 

 various tribes of buttercups, hemlock, and 

 thistle, are the choicest, whilst the despised 

 nettle is most prolific in a multitude of spe- 

 cies. Stones must be upturned everywhere, 

 bark scraped off trees, and all decaying tim- 

 ber carefully explored. All organized matter 

 going to decay, whether dunghills, the drop- 

 pings of cattle, or the dried hollow stems of 

 plants, dead animals on dry land or by the 

 sea-shore, the sweepings of granaries, cellars, 

 bakehouses, and the scrapings of sheep- 

 folds ; lakes, pools, and rivers contain many 

 peculiar species ; hence I may conclude with 

 this dictum, "Search everywhere." 



Few insects are stirring during winter ; 

 but ponds should be dragged, the bark of 

 trees and rotten wood explored, mosses and 

 lichens carried home in bags for examina- 

 tion, by shaking them over a white plate. 

 Dig some inches deep at the roots of trees 

 for pupae in the months of January and 

 February. Many more water-beetles will 

 be found in spring. Search below stones, on 

 well-trodden pathways, and sunny banks, 

 and by the margins of pools, stamping vio- 

 lently on the ground, to disturb such as are 

 lurking there : throw tufts of grass and the 

 dung of herbivorous animals into water, and 

 the insects will rise to the surface. Bees 

 and two- winged flies haunt most of our early 

 flowers, especially the sallow and sloe- 

 thorn amongst trees. At all seasons look on 

 the north sides of trees, gate-posts, and 

 palings, for moths in a state of repose. 



In summer, insects may be taken in 

 greatest abundance from two or three hours 

 after sunrise till noontide : their relative 

 abundance is much influenced by the wea- 



