82 ^ THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



out and walked ; for this conveyance was by this time, as usual, 

 filled up with Turks and Armenians, of that class who wear 

 European clothes surmounted by the never-failing tarboosh. 

 Persons of this description always did seem to occupy my 

 luggage-waggon, though how they got there, or what became of 

 them afterwards, I never knew ; and I would only stipulate that 

 no one should sit on my hold-all. 



It was still over an hour before I came within sight of Amasia 

 (1500 ft.), and, though I was very tired, footsore, and otherwise, 

 I thought I had never seen any place so beautiful before. The 

 town was, as it were, wedged into a huge cleft in the mountains, 

 by which it was shut in on all sides, and the surrounding country 

 in every direction presented an aspect which made me long to 

 explore it at once. 



Neither were my anticipations doomed to be disappointed ; the 

 neighbourhood of Amasia was quite delightful, and the butterflies 

 wonderful. Every day I came across some species new to me, 

 and some days two or even three new ones ; and these in most 

 cases were so abundant that good series were easily obtained of 

 almost everything. My only regret was that I had not come to 

 this "butterfly paradise" a month earlier, for the first brood of 

 Pieris chloridice had quite disappeared, and the few specimens of 

 Chrysophaniis ochimus which still remained were so worn that I 

 could only wait for their second appearance also ; while the 

 beautiful Zegris menestho was, alas ! practically over too, with no 

 hope of a second brood there. That Thaleropis ionia was also 

 quite worn and faded, I scarcely troubled about ; it was, I knew, 

 so certain to return in far greater numbers in its second brood 

 towards the end of June. Besides, there were plenty of species 

 fresh enough, some just emerging, and many yet to come. 



The country was quiet and settled, and the peasants civil and 

 obliging. Prof. Manissajian had told me of an old Armenian 

 peasant, who, having collected with himself for years, knew all 

 the specially favoured haunts in the neighbourhood, having also 

 acquired a certain amount of knowledge relating to nearly all the 

 most important of the local species, calling them for the most 

 part by their Latin names. The services of this old man, when 

 I first got to Amasia, were invaluable, for Bersa had not previously 

 visited this district, so that the country was as new and unex- 

 plored to him as it was to me. But I soon discovered that he 

 was possessed of a wonderful faculty for finding his way about, 

 which proved most useful, as I have no talent at all for doing so. 

 We had only to go once to some favoured haunt - say, the little 

 narrow gorge on the Caraman, where Thestor nogellii flitted over 

 the hot rocks below — and the next day, or a week later, or at any 

 time, Bersa would take me back to the exact spot with an un- 

 erring certainty which was most convenient ; for Amasia abounded 

 in special localities, and none there were which did not demand 

 many subsequent visits. 



