ON BREEDING ACULEATES, ETC. 117 



die. Ether is a very favourite method of killing 

 with many ; a few drops in a bottle with some 

 paper in it is sufficient to last for some hours ; it 

 however soon evaporates in hot weather, and it 

 is necessary to carry a small phial of it in 

 one's pocket to replenish the supply when ex- 

 hausted; this makes one smell of ether perpetually, 

 which is more than I can stand. But the insects 

 killed in this way are beautifully supple, and, 

 for those who wish to set their captures as they 

 would Lepidoptera, it is an excellent medium, 

 i.e. if they don't mind its smell ; it has also the 

 benefit of not affecting colour. Chloroform 

 acts much as ether does. When killed, I strongly 

 recommend collectors to pin their specimens 

 through the thorax with a very fine pin (those 

 used for micro-lepidoptera are the best), and 

 then to pin this through a narrow strip of card, 

 mounted on a long stout pin ; in this way the 

 insect can be moved about by the strong pin, and 

 the thorax of the insect itself is not destroyed, 

 as it often is in the case of the smaller species 

 by the use of thicker pins. The cards should 

 be cut as small as possible ; they need not be 

 more than a quarter of an inch long. The insect 



