BULLETIN 39, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. [92] 



in the notes the vial was referred to by nnmber of box and vial thus, 

 /a- (box 3, vial 73). The vial should project one-half to 1 inch above 

 the hole, and should be loose enough to provide for the sweUing of the 

 wood in moist weather. 



To protect the vials a cover having a depth of about IJ inch was 

 hinged to the back and secured in front by hook-and-eye fastenings. 



This method of storing vials is satisfactory enough for private collec- 

 tions, but for larger public collections is not so suitable. 



A rather convenient and inexpensive method of storing vials is that 

 used by Dr. Marx. In this method the vials are stored in a wooden 



Fig. 113.— The Marx tray for alcoholic specimens (original.) 



frame, shown at Fig. 113. The top piece of the tray into which the 

 vials are thrust has a cork center, in which holes corresponding to the 

 size of the vials are made with a gun-wad punch. The outer end of the 

 tray bears a label or labels describing the material in the tray. The 

 vials used by Dr. Marx are of thinner glass than those which I recom- 

 mend and flare slightly at the top, as shown in the accompanying 

 illustrations. They are made in various sizes to accommodate larger 



and smaller specimens. A vial thrust into 

 the hole punched in the cork rests on the bot- 

 tom piece of the tray, the flange or neck pre- 

 venting it from sliding through. These trays 

 are arranged on shallow shelves in a case or 

 cabinet, especially constructed for the purpose 

 and a large quantity of material may be stored 

 by their use in small compass. The use of the 

 cork center piece in the upper part of the 

 tray is not a necessity, and a wooden piece 

 may be used in which holes are bored with a, 

 bitt of x)roper size. 



Preserving Micro-larvw in Alcohol. — The 

 following is quoted from Packard's " Entomology for Beginners," for 

 which it was translated from the "Deutsche Ent. Zeitg.^'' 1887, Heft I: 



"Dr. H. Dewitz mounts the larvae and pupae of Microlepidoptera,, 

 and also the early stages of other small insects, in the following way: 

 The insects are put into a bottle with 95 per cent alcohol. Many larvae 

 turn black in alcohol, but boiling them in alcohol in a test tube will 

 bleach them. They may then be finally placed in glass tubes as small 

 and thin as possible, varying from 0.003 to 0.006 meter in diameter,. 



Fig. 114.— Vials used in the Marx 

 tray (original. ) 



