CURRENT NOTES. 175 
taken in setting, as witness lot 72, comprising Gonepteryx cleopatra 9, 
‘Charaxes jasius 2, Evanessa antiopa 4, Polygonia c-album 7, P. eyea 7, 
Melitaea aurinia var. provincialis 34, M. cinvia 18, etc. 93 specimens 
in all for 6s. Again, lot 70 of 132 specimens, including Coenonympha 
davus, Adopaea lineola, Thymelicus actaeon, Cyclopides palaemon, Papilio 
.alevanor, P. hospiton and others sold for the ghastly sum of 3s. Lot 
78 of 112 specimens, including wet and dry season forms of Terias, 
together with 15 specimens of Colias erate, sold for the same sum, viz., 
3s. And what shall we say about lot 135, comprising 390 insect 
‘specimens collected in Switzerland in 1914 valued at 4s.? Yet we 
hear that on the same day, a very few doors from where these beautiful 
insects were being given away, a necklace of pearls sold in less than five 
minutes for £24,000. Truly it can be literally said of these beautiful 
insects that they are “ pearls without price.” 
Whilst many ‘“lots’’ were sold far below their value, there were a 
few that changed hands at prices almost meriting the adjective 
fabulous, as when £20 was given for four specimens of Antanartia 
mauritiana (Joicey), although the next ‘‘lot’’ of four similar specimens 
went for 7 guineas (Rothschild). Then 80 specimens of Papilios, in- 
eluding Papilio manlius, 5 §s1 2, P. phorbanta, 1 f 2 28, also 
produced £20 (Joicey). Good specimens of Chrysophanus dispar still 
maintain their value, as lot 144 reads “1 dispar male,” £8 15s Od. 
({Joicey), and lot 145, “ditto female, very perfect,” £5 (Joicey). Then 
it was interesting to note that lot 71 of 185 specimens, but containing 
‘one Thais rumina ab. honoratit, realised £1 6s. Od. (Rothschild), as the 
writer remembers that when at Digne in 1910 he was asked 20 frances 
for a specimen of this aberration, which request gave rise to a sardonic 
‘smile. 
Generalising on one’s experiences of the sale-room it is pretty safe 
to assert that good prices can only now be obtained for (a) types, (6) 
extraordinary aberrations, (c), extinct species, or (d) rarities. These 
latter are rapidly dwindling in number and will become fewer as the 
facilities for travel increase.—H.H.P. 
GXYURRENT NOTES AND SHORT NOTICES. 
No. 6 (March) of the Bull. Soc. ent. F'r., illustrates a teratological 
example of the Coleopteron Carabus dufouri from Bobadilla, Andalusia, 
in which the femur of the right median leg is much enlarged, and bears 
at its extremity three perfect tibie, each of which bears equally well 
developed tarsal joints. Unfortunately the specimen was mutilated, so 
that only one tibia had the full complement of five tarsi and two claws. 
‘The writer, Mr. Ch. Alluaud, suggests that, since the tarsal joints on 
the two incomplete legs had apparently been originally perfect, the 
probability was that it was a case of self-mutilation. 
In the same number Mr. A.-Li. Clément deseribes, figures, and 
names a striking aberration of Mrebia aethiops as ab. royi. The band 
of the forewing is large and without ocellated spots, the band of the 
hindwing is deeper in colour, interrupted and contains three small 
ocellated spots. On the underside there is no trace of eyespots on the 
forewings, and on the hindwings the band contains only one extremely 
small ocellated spot on the external border of the light band between 
veins two and three. 
