MARCH. 51 



posing the ray that enters it ; but in this case it was far too 

 cold for any rain : if anything was falling between you and 

 the sun it must have been snow, and if anything was floating 

 in the air, it must have been minute spiculae or crystals of 

 ice. The haze you speak of was doubtless the cause, and 

 the reason why the circle was not perfect was, that the mist 

 extended no higher than the point at which the arcs ceased 

 to be visible. 



C. After the sun was set, the mist was much more 

 distinctly visible, and I observed that it abruptly ended at 

 about that height. 



F. You have not yet observed any symptoms of activity 

 in the insect tribes, I presume ? 



C. Few, except such as are to be found throughout the 

 winter, are to be met with : a few tipulidan gnats fly abroad 

 on sunshiny days. I have lately observed in pine-woods in 

 one particular place, several insects crawling about the snow, 

 exactly resembling small Tipulce, even having halteres, but 

 totally destitute of wings. They are about one-fourth of an 

 inch in length : they have been rather numerous ; I took six 

 of them in one evening. 



F. They are doubtless the Chionea Araneoides : it is 

 singular that I have observed these in company with another 

 very remarkable apterous insect, belonging to a winged fa- 

 mily, (Panorpidce,) in some numbers. I allude to Boreus 

 Hyemalis, an insect much like a flea. I have never seen 

 either but in one spot, the black-woods to the south of the 

 Masuippi, near its junction with the Coatacook ; it was at 

 this season and on the snow. 



C. That is the same place at which I found them. 

 And what is likewise remarkable, I found, a few days ago, a 

 moth crawling on the snow, a rather large Tortrix ; but 



D 2 



