THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 89 



" Orthoptera " (Charpentier) ; " Forest Insects " (Ratzenburg) ; 

 " Dutch Expedition to Sumatra — Botany and Zoology ; " " Acari, 

 Myriopoda, et Scorpiones " (Berlessii) ; " Melances Orthopter- 

 ologiques " (Saussure); " Catalogus Specierum Generis Scolia'' 

 (Saussure et Sichel) ; " Etudes sus les Vespides " (Saussure) ; 

 " Illustrations of more than i,ooo Species of North-west European 

 Ichneumonidse, sensu Linnsano." We also had the pleasure of 

 seeing the plates which will be issued in illustration of part ii. of 

 *' Destructive Insects of Victoria," the letterpress of which is in 

 active course of preparation, as also the plates of a treatise on 

 locusts, which will very shortly be in the hands of the public. 



The whole visit gave the greatest pleasure to all those who took 

 part in it, and the impression left was that the Government is 

 doing a work of immense importance to the economic and 

 commercial life of the colony in the support of such a department 

 as this, and that they have chosen wisely in appointing as 

 Director one who not only possesses the requisite knowledge, 

 but who also brings to bear upon the work skill and energy 

 which must, in the long run, rank the Victorian Entomological 

 Department one of the foremost in Australia. 



W. FIELDER. 



EXCURSION TO CHELTENHAM. 



About a dozen members took part in an excursion to Cheltenham 

 on 5th September, avowedly for botanical purposes. In fact, 

 two of them left the rest immediately, in order to look for birds' 

 eggs, and have not since been heard of. Three others engaged 

 in a more or less successful search for insects, while the remainder 

 divided their attention between snakes and wild flowers. Of the 

 former, two specimens were obtained ; of the latter, a great 

 many, but not of any particular value to che collector. It was 

 hoped that Hovea heterophylla would be met with behind the 

 Cheltenham cemetery, and a start was therefore made in that 

 direction ; but some never-to-be-sufficiently-execrated clearers 

 had been before us, and had left no signs even of the plants. 

 We therefore went on in a south-west direction, till we came near 

 the beach road, discovering on the way Polyjoompholyx tenella, 

 Sprengelia incarnata, and early specimens of most of the common 

 spring orchids of the locality. For these, however, it was a few 

 days too early. A council of war was held under some ti-tree 

 scrub (for a heavy shower had come on), and resulted in a 

 division of the party, half walking on to Sandringhara along the 

 coast, and the other half returning by a different route to 

 Cheltenham, and so, in company with the patronizers of Mentone 

 races, to Melbourne. 



