SETTING. 



295 



that group, but it serves no useful purpose to expound special methods which are 

 familiar or unsuited to those who work on special groups. 



Killing. 



The entomologist must have good killing methods, or his specimens are useless. 

 The ordinary cyanide bottle is good and precautions must be taken to keep it dry 

 inside. 



I prefer a mixture of benzene and chloroform in equal parts, with a few drops 

 of citronella or bergamot oil added. (B. C.) A wide-mouthed bottle with wads of 

 blotting paper damped with this mixture is very good, and I find it suits all groups 

 equally well. 



For laboratory material or for dissecting, heat or absolute alcohol give good results 

 for most insects. 



Tobacco smoke will, if nothing else be available, kill many small insects ; 

 Bymenoptera especially curl up almost at once. 



Setting, Pinning, Mounting. 



Having killed one's specimens, the next thing is to set them. There again a 

 treatise is required to cover all the special methods, and no attempt is made to do 

 more than outline the subject. Experience and many failures teach more than a 

 volume can do, and many specimens must be mined before this can be mastered. 



Pins are of various kinds. The ordinary insect pin, white or enamelled black, 

 is the best, and one may use them entirely or use Carlsbad or long American pins. 

 Steel pins, enamelled black, are not reliable as the enamel comes off and the pin rusts 

 through. D. F. Tayler or Kirby Beard & Co. make ordinary pins and Tayler's 

 Nos. 2, 3, 7, 12, 16 and 20 cover practically all needs. In pinning, the point is to have 

 one-third of one's pin above the insect and the rest in and below it. It is usual to pin 

 Orthoptera in the middle of the thorax or through the right wing; Neuroptera, 

 Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera and Hemiptera through the thorax ; Coleoptera through 

 the right wing-case so that the pin does not pierce the right hind leg. 



Small insects are often very troublesome to mount and set, and there are special 

 methods for them. 



Staging consists in pinning the insect with a fine pin on a slip of polyporus pith j 

 the pith is then pinned with a big pin. Any compact white pith will do. 



Fro. L. 



Locust Cached in paper [cylinder! 



Gumming consists of fixing the insect to a slip of card, and p r nning that with a 

 big pin. White gum is used, as little as possible being taken. The cards used here are 

 rectangular, as narrow as possible ; others prefer triangular points. 



