96 THE entomologist's kecord, 



exhibited in the length of the Proceedinqs for the year, which has only 

 reached 35 pages against 47 for 1898, 65 for 1897, and 61 for 1896. 

 The Transactions, too, are smaller for 1899, and one notes them as 

 containing only 499 pp. and 17 plates, as against 592 pp. and 17 

 plates for 1889, whilst those for 1898 also contained but 444 pages 

 and 19 plates against 606 pages and 17 plates for 1888. The Pro- 

 ceedings are especially interesting to the general body of Fellows 

 and should be maintained at any cost at the highest possible standard 

 of excellence. 



It must be a matter for general congratulation among naturalists that 

 Sir John Lubbock has been raised to the peerage as Lord Avebury. In 

 the bustle and worry of a crowded life, no one has done more to raise the 

 level of the popular taste in those branches of natural science he so 

 dearly loves, and one could wish that increased leisure would allow the 

 Ex-President of the Entomological Society of London again to return 

 to the more special branches of our own science, in which, for so many 

 years, he was one of the most successful and hardest workers. We also 

 observe that he presided on January lOth-llth at the Conference 

 of Science Teachers which was held at the Imperial Institute, and 

 we may further note that at the same conference Mr, J. W. Tutt 

 read a paper entitled " Object Lessons in Natural History." It would 

 appear that natural science will soon have its lawful place in the curri- 

 cula of our technical and secondary schools recognised by those in 

 authority (H.D.). 



There is an excellent annotated " List of the Macro-Lepidoptera 

 collected within eight miles of Hull," by Mr. J. W. Boult, in the 

 Transactions of the Hull Scientific and Field Naturalists Club, published 

 December 1st, 1899. In it 287 species are recorded, but the list is 

 more remarkable for the omission of some of what we generally con- 

 sider common species than anything included. One is inclined to 

 consider that the excuse for the exclusion of the Micro-Lepidoptera, 

 viz.: " We experience great difficulty in getting these named," is alto- 

 gether unworthy of a Field Naturalists' Club whose duty it should 

 certainly be to name the insects of its district for the outsider. We 

 further observe that the Editor "has taken a good deal of trouble with 

 Mr. Boult' s list, the order and nomenclature of which have been 

 reduced to that of Mr, G. T. Porritt's List of Yorlishire lA'pidoptvra, 

 1883." One expects Natural History Societies to mark progress, not 

 to set back (as we suspect this really means) the nomenclature used by 

 its more advanced and up-to-date members to a list (Doubleday's) that 

 has long since been obsolete among the newer generation of lepi- 

 dopterists ; all of which, however, detracts nothing from the value of 

 the list, as a local list, which shows evidence of great care and know- 

 ledge of the local fauna on the part of the author who compiled it from 

 his own observations and those of his co-workers. 



Our "Special Index" for vol. xi. (1899), consisting of no less than 

 28 pp. of closely printed (double-column) references, can now be 

 obtained from Mr. H. E. Page, "Bertrose," Gellatly Road, St. 

 Catherine's Park, S.E. Price Is, Our last volume completed, there- 

 fore, consisted of 352 pp. of letterpress, 8 pp, general index, 28 pp. 

 special index, and 2 pp. title page. We suspect 390 pp. solid 8vo., 

 constitutes a record in the quantity of matter published by any one 

 monthly entomological magazine in this country in a year. 



