720 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXII. No. 570. 



duct, have stirred twenty professors in the 

 university and not a few other teachers to 

 memorialize the minister of state for education. 

 They insist that the competency of Professor 

 Tomizu to hold his chair and his personal 

 character and general conduct are the main 

 points for a minister of education to consider, 

 and not his political opinions from which the 

 ministry and many others may differ. They 

 contend, moreover, that there is nothing in 

 the rules laid down for civil officials, which 

 authorizes the treatment of a man with a uni- 

 versity professor's status in such a way. 



This appeal represents the convictions of 

 some of the most eminent names in Japan's 

 list of pedagogues and scientists, who, how- 

 ever much they wish a renewal of Professor 

 Tomizu's right status, care even more for the 

 principle involved and the precedent estab- 

 lished, a precedent contrary, they believe, to 

 the best educational and political interests of 

 the land. They realize that if Professor 

 Tomizu can be summarily discharged by a 

 minister of education on this issue, they may 

 be discharged at any time on other issues. 



In this country academic opinion usually is 

 favorable to peace and hostile to war and 

 extreme measures. In Japan, during the re- 

 cent conflict with Russia, academic opinion 

 has been conspicuous for a belligerency of 

 spirit. 



Japan's surviving avitocracy and absolutism 

 under parliamentary forms, has enabled the 

 ministry in its dealing with journalists to be 

 as severe and peremptory as public welfare 

 seemed to make necessary. Professor Tomizu 

 has felt the same iron hand, conserving the 

 interests of peace, at a time when popular 

 feeling has run high and strong. — The Boston 

 Transcript. 



NOTES ON ENTOMOLOGY. 



Several fascicles of Wytsman's ' Genera 

 Insectorum ' have recently been issued; some 

 of much interest to American entomologists. 

 Pascicle 22 treats of the Braconidse; it is in 

 two parts, of 253 pages and 3 colored plates; 

 it is written by Gy. V. Szepligeti. His classi- 

 fication is, in the main, that of Dr. Ashmead, 

 but he has added several new genera. 



Pascicle 23 deals with the Crioceridse, a 

 group of chrysomelid beetles. M. Jacoby and 

 H. Clavareau are the authors, and the paper 

 contains 40 pages and 5 colored plates. Most 

 of these forms are exotic. 



Pascicle 24 is on the subfamily Scutellerinse 

 of the family Pentatomidse. It is by H. 

 Schouteden, and occupies 98 pages and 5 col- 

 ored plates. Most of the species are from the 

 tropics. 



Fascicle 25 is by J. Desneux on the Termi- 

 tidse or white ants. There are 52 pages and 

 2 colored plates. He has given a very com- 

 plete catalogue of the family. His sinking' of 

 the many new genera recently created at the 

 expense of the old genus Termes is to be highly 

 commended, although he admits that the genus 

 may be divided into six subgenera. 



Fascicle 26 is devoted to the Culicidse, or 

 mosquitoes ; F. W. Theobald is the author. 

 There are 50 pages and 2 colored plates. One 

 notices the omission of several species de- 

 scribed by Miss Ludlow, and other American 

 entomologists. Apparently ignorant of their 

 identity, Mr. Theobald retains both Pelorempis 

 and Eucorethra as distinct genera, and even 

 finds characters to separate them in the table. 



A USEFUL article is that by Mr. M. T. Cook 

 on the insect galls of Indiana.^ It includes a 

 general treatment of galls, a catalogue of the 

 Indiana species, with a brief description, and 

 often figure, of the gall, ending with a bibliog- 

 raphy. The insects are not described. The 

 enthusiastic author appears, unfortunately, to 

 have but a slight acquaintance with the Euro- 

 pean literature on cecidii. 



Major T. L. Casey has revised another 

 large group of American beetles ; the tribe 

 Psederini of the family Staphylinidse." The 

 generic synopses include all American genera, 

 but the specific tables include only the species 

 from the United States. Many of the genera 

 are described as new, and there are many notes 

 on the position of genera, and suggested im- 

 provements in the accepted classification. 



^ ' The Insect Galls of Indiana,' 29th Ann. Rept. 

 Dept. Geol. Indiana, 1904, pp. 801-867, 52 figs. 



- ' A Revision of the American Psederini,' Trans. 

 Acad. 8ci.,St. Louis, XV., pp. 17-248, 1905. 



