June, '05] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 203 



against it. Could it be the wind that caused the insects to turn at one 

 time and not at another. 



That I might observe the action of the insects more closely a friend 

 undertook their flushing while I stood by the side of the road hoping they 

 would alight near me. Soon one did so. My friend was walking with 

 the wind and the startled beetle after a short flight dropped to the ground 

 just in front of me. Before alighting it made a quick sharp turn into the 

 wind, folding its wings and dropped to the ground running a few steps as 

 if unable to overcome the impetus of its flight. My friend then began to 

 flush the beetles while walking against the wind. After a while 1 was 

 again fortunate to have one alight near me. It did not turn before drop- 

 ping to the ground but alighted in the direction in which it flew, that was 

 against the wind. These observations were repeated many times with 

 the same results. The insect observed was Cicindela repanda, and the 

 deduction is that the turning of the insect just before alighting is more to 

 alight easily by turning against the wind than for the purpose of facing the 

 pursuer.— R. M. Moore, M. D., Rochester, New York. 



A CURIOUS disease from caterpillar hairs. Drs. G. E. de Schweinitz 

 and E. A. Shumway in the Transactions of the American Ophthalmological 

 Society for 1904, describe a peculiar disease of the eye known as Conjunc- 

 tivitis nodosa. "The patient stated that while playing in the yard of the 

 asylum her eye became inflamed, owing, as she expressed it, to some- 

 thing getting into the eye Downward and inward on the 



bulbar conjunctiva were a number of flattened, grayish-yellow nodules, 

 between which was a marked congestion of the conjunctival and episcleral 

 vessels. Twenty-seven nodules could be differentiated. The whole con- 

 dition strongly suggested tubercle of the conjunctiva Directly 



in the centre of a certain number of the nodules is the section of a hair. . 



. . The children are much accustomed to playing with caterpillars, 

 and are in the habit, as one of the children stated, of scaring the young 

 ones by throwing caterpillars at them. The caterpillar which is most 

 used in this playful proceeding is the wooly bear {Spilosoma vtrginica)." 

 — Brief abstract from the original paper. 



Doings of Societies. 



The February meeting of the Newark Entomological Society 

 was held on the 12th, with President Keller in the chair and 20 

 members present. The minutes of the previous meeting were 

 read and approved. Mr. h. Hafner, of Jersey City, and Mr. 

 E. W. Scheuber, of Hoboken, were proposed and unanimouslj' 

 elected to membership. The Field Committee reported pro- 

 gress, also the Curators. 



