DISSECTION. 



repaid by the advantage gained by the student, even 

 were the trouble multiplied tenfold. 



But, in reality, there is scarcely any trouble 

 needed. If the intending entomologist should content 

 himself with merely learning a string of names by 

 rote, he must expect to find his lesson a hard and 

 repulsive one, and that it will be forgotten almost as 

 soon as learned. Practical knowledge is ever the 

 best, and the reader who intends to become an ento- 

 mologist should take some Beetle the largest he can 

 find and compare it, piece by piece, with the figures 

 and description. 



The most effective plan of all, however, is to take 

 the Beetle entirely to pieces, and to lay out the por- 

 tions on a card in their proper order, numbering each 

 piece, and writing an index to the numbers. The 

 various portions can be fixed to the card by gum 

 tragacanth, which has the advantage of great holding 

 power and dries without leaving the glittering surface 

 which is found in most cements. I recommend 

 taking two Beetles, so as to show the upper and under 

 sides of each portion. This will be found peculiarly 

 interesting in the thorax. 



Before any attempt at dissecting the Beetle it 

 should be steeped in soft water for a time, until the 

 soft parts are thoroughly dissolved. The water 

 should then be poured away, and fresh, water sub- 

 stituted until the whole of the muscles and viscera 

 have been washed away. Care must be taken lest 

 any of the smaller joints be lost during this process. 

 When the whole skeleton is fairly laid out, it can be 

 mounted in a glass frame, and, besides serving as an 



