24 Journal New York Entomological Society. [Vol. vi. 



Not only does Rothschildia carry the Nymphalid and Lycsenid secon- 

 dary movement of the veins to an extreme, but it shows also the sub- 

 primary Papilionid specialization of the hindwings, the inner margin 

 hollowed out, and VIII vanished, characters evinced by the Attacinse. 

 No better proof can be offered to sustain the thesis, that rank is a rela- 

 tive conception and that corresponding specializations are worked out 

 upon different phylogenetic lines. And we see that it is inevitable, that 

 systematists like Mr. Scudder, who erect an imaginary sequence upon 

 the fastening of the chrysalis, or other congruous class of facts, and 

 finding some example, like Oeneis, which meets their fancied require- 

 ments, proceed to place this " at the head " of the lepidoptera, must be 

 doomed to disappointment. 



The arrangement for the new check list may be provisionally laid 

 down here, so far as embraced, by the two parts of my revision now 

 published. I may say, that, so far as my preliminary studies are con- 

 cerned, I believe to recognize eight superfamilies in the Lepidoptera: 

 Papilionides, Hesperiades, Sphingides, Saturniades, Bombycides (Agro- 

 tides), Tineides, Micropterygides and Hepialides. I would keep as 

 near as may be to the Linnean sequence, transferring the Sesiadse and 

 Anthroceridae from the Sphinges to the Tineides; and the Cossidse, 

 Apodidse, Ptychopsychidse and Psychidae from the Bombyces to the 

 Tineides. 



To sum up : In Hemileuca, as in Saturnia, veins IVi and IV2 are 

 furcate at the extremity of a long stem. This stem is morphologically 

 the extension of that piece of the cross-vein lying between IVi and the 

 Radius. Vein IVr is thus prevented absolutely from ascending the 

 Radius, as it can in Aglia and Automeris , where no such extension 

 takes place or offers to take place, and does in Citheronia. The neur- 

 ation here demands, in a positive manner, the classification advanced 

 by me. No looking at the neuration "broadly," no trifling as to terms 

 or the theoretical value of certain changes in the movable veins, can 

 ever obscure this point, which proves that Aglia can never be brought 

 into a connection, either as a derived or original representative form, 

 with the typical Saturnians. The dichotomy proposed by me is borne 

 out by all exotic Saturnians I have been able to study. On the other 

 hand, the reference of Endromis to the Sphingides is not positively de- 

 manded by the neuration ; a shorter vein, connecting II and III, and 

 bending down II, near base of hindwings is present in Bombyx mori. 

 From uncompleted studies in the Lachneidse, this may not be homol- 

 ogois. The union is at most not contradicted strongly. It becomes 



