950 PEOCEEDTNGS OF THE THIRD ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 



Scissors-nets are made on the principle of a pair of scissors whose 

 blades are replaced by flat areas of net supported on diamond- shaped 

 or oblong frames which can be separated or brought together by the 

 action of the handles (Plate 149. fig. 2). They are ■ intended for 

 capturing Aculeate Hymenoptera resting on flowers, leaves, etc. I 

 have never used one myself, or met anyone who has, and imagine 

 that their utility is not great. 



Slore-boxes are used for the temporary or permanent preservation 

 •of pinned specimens and should be light-and air-tight, lined with some 

 material which will hold the pins firmly, and of a convenient size and 

 weight for storage and handling. As further information about store- 

 boxes is given further on under the heading of " Preserving," it only 

 seems necessary to say here that the most convgiient store-box for 

 general purposes is one made of good deal, with top and bottom of 

 tliree-ply wood, external dimensions 17-J long by 12 inches broad by 

 4 inches deep, lined on both sides with cork covered with white paper 

 and provided with a naphthaline-cell. (Plate 150, fig. 1). 



For general collecting purposes, when travelling, it is. useful to rule 

 light pencil lines across the paper lining so as to form squares about 

 two inches each way, as .specimens from one locality can then be placed 

 in one or more squares with a small label pinned into the lower right- 

 hand corner, and there is then no difficulty later on, when permanent 

 labels are to be affixed to the specimens, in knowing which particular 

 locality any specimen came from. Specimens with any particular 

 data may also be isolated with ease in this way. Another method of 

 isolating groups of specimens is to draw a line around them with pencil ; 

 but this looks untidy and, after a little use, the lines are liable to be 

 •confused together, whereas the squares may be used indefinitely and, 

 if they are fairly small, little spac^ is wasted owing to incompletely filled 

 squares. 



One of the worst enemies of the collection in India is mould and 

 it is often difficult to avoid mould developing on newly-caught and 

 imperfectly dried specimens, especially when collecting in a damp 

 ■climate and having to open the collecting-box constantly to add fresh 

 ■specimens. Before .starting, -therefore, it is a good plan to treat the 

 store-box with a saturated solution of naphthaline in benzine or any 

 similar solvent, pouring the solution all over the inside of the box and 

 allowing the solvent .to evaporate," when a thin film of naphthaline is 

 left over the interior ; this, while it lasts, will effectually prevent the 

 development of mould and, when the naphthaline has evaporated, there 

 will generally be room to pour in a little more of the solution over unoccu- 

 pied portions of the lining. The amount of naphthaline contained in 



