go i March, 



swampy in many parts, only a few high forest-clad hills being visible 

 in the background. The coco-nut palm, so conspicuous a feature in 

 the scenery of all the places we had lately visited, was here entirely 

 absent, its place being taken by the bamboo. Prom the extensive 

 Lago de Bay, some 15 miles from Manila, the river Pasig, which divides 

 the city into two somewhat unequal parts, brings down a great quantity 

 of the so-called " water cabbage," Pistia stratiotes, a gigantic ally of 

 our duckweeds. This plant is superficially very like a small lettuce 

 or cabbage, and the whole surface of the harbour is strewn with it at 

 certain states of the tide. 



As the city of Manila contains nearly 300,000 inhabitants, and 

 occupies a proportionately large area, I found it necessary to hire a 

 two-wheeled carriage, or " cara mata " as it is called here, and to go 

 out some foar or five miles into the country before I could find any 

 collecting ground at all worth working. Such a locality T found at 

 the village of Santa Misa, close to the reservoir which supplies the 

 city with drinking water, this being conveyed by means of a huge cast 

 iron pipe to its destination. Along the course of this pipe, which is 

 planted on either side with tall rows of bamboo, and in some rough 

 waste ground near the reservoir, in the midst of interminable paddy 

 fields and fruit gardens, I found a very tolerable variety of Lepidoptera. 

 The fine yellow Ornithoptera found rarely at Samboangan was here 

 tolerably common. It is a beautiful sight to see one of these grand 

 insects, daintily poised (as it were on tiptoe) with vibrating wings 

 and extended proboscis, on one of the bright red or yellow corymbs 

 of that most attractive shrub, Lantana camera. While thus " on the 

 feed " the Orniilioptera admits of a very close approach, and is easily 

 captured. Two Papilio'^, of the '^Pammon''' and "Affamemnon^^ groups 

 respectively, were occasionally seen, but not captured, and a beautiful 

 species of this genus, sooty-black with rich crimson abdomen and 

 spots of the same colour on the under-side of the tailed hind-wings, 

 occurred not rarely in shady places, Pieris, Ponfia, Hehomoia, JEronia, 

 Callidryas, and Terias were represented, more or less copiously, 

 but there was a marked absence of the usually abundant Danais and 

 Euplcea, only one very ordinary looking species of the former genus 

 being obtained. One much damaged specimen of a very handsome 

 form of Lihythea occurred at Lantana flowers, with Diadema Misippus 

 and sp., Atella Phalanta?, Junonia (two species), a fine Precis allied 

 to the Australian P. Zelima, Neptis sp. very like the European N. 

 aceris, Yptliima sp. (abundant), &c., &c. The Lyccenidce and TIesperiidce 

 were represented only by a few small and comparatively obscure forms. 



