1899] ENTOMOLOGICAL NEWS. 153 



this as we have had the beuefit of time and the trau!?mitted training 

 and experience of such men as Say, Melsheimer. Haldeman, Le- 

 conte, Horn. Fel'lman and other bright lights of Science. In addi- 

 tion to all this we have tine libraries, and a number of the best 

 known and oldest scientilic societies on this continent ; in fact thei-e 

 is an atmosphere of science which allows no decadence. We are 

 particular and like to see things done properly, and when they are 

 not, and our friends and correspondents complain that we are fussy 

 and hypercritical, it 'jars' us. If we are lepidopterists we like to 

 see the scales on the wings where nature has placed them ; we like 

 to see the color and character of the thoracic hair of the Hesperi- 

 dae : we know that it is an anatomical fact that butterflies and 

 moths each have two antennae ; we don't like Sphinx pins in Ly- 

 caenidae and Lycaena pins in Sphingidae : we like the specimen 

 pinned through the middle of the thorax and nowhere else, and 

 not at an angle of 45°; we like specimens symmetrically spi-ead at 

 the same height on the pin and with the antenna? parallel, and on 

 the same plane as the costa of the fore-wing ; we object to pin labels 

 on .specimens as big as bill posters; we are never so tired that we 

 can't write a few numbers for specimens, and don't resort to the 

 very largest numbered calendar we can tind ; we are not satisfied to 

 know what State an insect comes from, as thei'e is some difference in 

 the character of the country around San Fi-ancisco, the top of Mt. 

 Whitney or the Mohave desert for instance; we are also curious to 

 know whether our butterfly was taken Christmas day or the Fourth 

 of July; we do not put specimens in the same shape and make of 

 papers that the contectioner uses for " sour balls ; " we are satisfied 

 with one specimen in a paper, as we Use a pair of antennae on each 

 of them- As to packing insects for transportation, we know some- 

 thing about that, but it is a long story. We have collections here in 

 the different orders that should be seen to be appreciated and col- 

 lectors that are not surpassed anywhere in America. We are proud 

 of our record and can't lower our standard for anybody, and our 

 friends North, East, South or West must do as well or drop out of 

 the race. As to collectors, we have them in almost every order, 

 and they know their work well. Take a trip with me to the ' Neck ' 

 or Anglesea, and watch our jovial fellow member, H. W. W., coat 

 off, white umbrella in hand, beating for Coleoptera. Where is his 

 equal as a keen collector, who gets there in spite of every obstacle ? 

 Go with me on a spring day to Clementonand see our friend, P. L , 

 taking in Pamphila metea, Thecla niphon, Syneda graphica and 

 other good things which, when spread, will go in one of the best 

 ordered collections in the country. Our Dipterist is an indefatig- 

 able collector and finds new families and genera right across the 

 Delaware. There are few like him. We have an Orthopterist 

 and Hemiptei-ist, who is a mighty good fellow too, but he won't 

 work very hard so long as the other people bring him plenty of 

 material for study. In the Odonata we have a colleccor of repute. 



