510 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HIST, SOCIETY, Vol, XXVIII, 
butterflies require only a light touch. A little practice is required to avoid da- 
maging the legs and rubbing the wings, but there is no great difficulty. Another 
popular method is to use a killing bottle, which must have a very wide mouth 
and be filled to a depth of half an inch or so with a paste containing cyanide of 
potassium ; any chemist will supply it. My objection to the killing bottle 
is that it is a cumbrous thing to carry about and one wants to be lightly equipped 
when chasing butterflies ; however, the cyanide bottle is used by a number of 
experts. 
22, The treatment of a butterfly after he has been killed depends on what is 
to be done with it ; that is to say whether the colector means to set it, when he 
gets in, or to put in an envelope so as to set it at leisure in his old age or to use 
it as a duplicate to send to his friends. According to the size of the body, rigor 
mortis sets in quickly or slowly ; a stout Nymphalid wili remain in a settable 
condition for a day or more, but a delicate blue becomes stiff in an hour on a hot 
dry day. A butterfly that has become stiff can of course be relaxed for setting, 
but it is always more satisfactory to set it before rigor mortis has set in ; a butter- 
fly that has been set after relaxing has an aggravating tendency in damp weather 
to revert to the folded position in which rigor mortis set in ; also the danger of 
breaking off legs is greater and the whole operation of setting is more difficult 
in the case of a relaxed specimen. Now I have adopted the following method 
after having tried many others. Having caught the butterfly, I decide whether 
T will set it that evening or not. If I decide to set it, I pin it and place it in a 
sma!l cork lined zine box, the upperside of which I take care to keep damp ; if 
time is short, owing to there being many good things about, or ifmy hand is 
shaky after an exciting chase, I pin it sideways as a temporary measure, but 
pin it ready for setting when I sit down fora breather. Ifmy box is crowded, I 
often pin a butter-fly inside my hat, where it keeps damp enough. IfI decide 
not to set, I put it unpinned with its wings folded over its back into a “ cocked 
hat” envelope. The spare envelopes can be carried in one’s pockets, but, when 
filled, they should be put into a cigarette tin, since the friction that may occur in 
one’s pocket is very likely to cause serious damage. Once a butterfly has been 
‘killed, I never handle it with my fingers again, if I can help it; to move him about 
and to get his wings folded correctly, I use a pair of tweezers with rounded flat 
ends they can be bought froma Chemist, but the ends usually want filling. 
A heavy day’s catching may result in a bag of as many as 100 butterflies and 
experience has led me to adopt the above method as the most satisfactory for 
dealing with large numbers. 
23. Setting a butterfly requires a good deal of practice ; don’t be slipshod about 
it; a well set butterfly looks infinitely nicer than a 
poorly set one. ‘The old English method was to set po ed ees 
on boards like this ; very low on the board with the 
wings curving down ; it is not a good method and has 
been abandoned by all museums and good collectors Fig. _ 
in preference for what is called the continental me- yrs. 
thod. Personally I use a modified continental system, because the correct one 
involves very deep boxes and consequently more trouble when moving. Still I 
recommend anyone who is settled to use the correct system. The board is like 
this ;the depth ofthe slot being? inches; in my 
method the depthis 4 inch. Boards can be obtained [ers aie 
ready from Watkins and Doncaster or the Army and % 
Navy Stores ; several sizes are required for various sized Wi ies 
butterflies ; I recommend the following widths out to fl ig co 
out by width of slot; 12x4;6x%;5x4; 3x. 45. 
Don’t leave a setting board out in the open even for a few minutes unattended 
as ants can do an infinity of damage in no time. They should be put in a tight 
fitting box or in a meat safe with the legs resting on saucers full of water. I have 
