BULLETIN 39, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. [96] 



species. The well-known signs for male, female, and worker, printed 

 in convenient form, are well adapted for collections. (4) The name 

 of the collector. This label is of less value, but sometimes becomes 

 important in determining the history of the specimen or the exact place 

 of capture. The name of the species is not necessarily attached to all 

 the specimens in a collection, and ordinarily will be placed with the 

 first specimen in a series in the cabinet. This and other labeling of 

 insects in cabinet is discussed in another place. Other labels are 

 useful to indicate type specimens, namely, those of which descriptions 

 have been drawn up and published, and which should be designated 

 l3j a special label written by the author himself. Determinations by 

 an authority in a special group should be indicated, and the labels 

 placed on specimens by such an authority should not be removed. 



It will not be found necessary to use a separate label for each of the 

 data indicated above, and a single label may be made to combine many 

 of them, as, except for the specific names of the insects themselves 

 (which should always be on the lowermost label), most other words will 

 bear abbreviation, especially localities and dates. "A combination label, 

 which has given general satisfaction to all to whom it has been commu- 

 nicated, is a two-line label printed in diamond type, on heavy writing 

 paper. The upper line consists of the name of the locality, e. g., 'Wash- 

 ngtn' (a name consisting of more than eight letters to be abbreviated), 

 and the lower line has at the right-hand corner 'DO' (interpunctuation 

 and spacing to be avoided so as to save space). This leaves on the sec- 

 ond line sufficient room for inserting the date, which can be quickly 

 and neatly written with ink if the labels are x)rinted in columns of ten 

 or more repetitions. The label thus combines locality with date of cap- 

 ture. Or the upper line reads 'Arizona' and the lower line 'Morrison,' 

 the label thus combining locality with the name of the collector."* 



In general I indorse the system of labehng suggested in the above 

 condensation from Mr. Schwarz, but there is no particular disadvantage, 

 and in fact many advantages, in special cases, in a larger label or in 

 folded labels. Particularly in visiting large foreign collections I have 

 found it convenient to use large labels of thin paper which will contain a 

 ^ood deal of information closely written in pencil and bear folding sev- 

 eral times, so as not to occupy more than the ordinary label space when 

 pinned to the specimens. This involves detaching the label when the 

 specimen or species comes to be studied, but this additional labor is in- 

 significant compared with the large amount of valuable information 

 which in time is thus brought together in condensed availability for 

 the student; for brief notes of opinions of experts, of comparison with 

 types, of special studies, of reference to descriptions, etc., may thus be 

 all brought together. Where there is not room to indicate the authority 

 for a determination on the upper side of a label, 1 also find it conven- 

 ient to do so on the lower side. 



*E. A. Schwarz, Proc. Ent. Soc, Wash., II, No. 1, 1891. 



