ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 19 



acre was known for many years as " the common white variety of Euchcetes Egle" because, 

 forsooth, entomologists were too lazy or too stupid to secure the eggs and rear the species. 



But I find a very curious tendency in many men to be both lumpers and splitters, 

 lumpers in dealing with the work of others, but splitters in their own work. 



A man takes up some group with the view of monographing it, gathers specimens 

 from far and near, inspects all the types to which he can gain access, and finally 

 announces that what have passed for half-a dozen distinct species are merely slight local 

 varieties of one world-pervading species. 



Now this may be all right, though I think that such lumping might, perhaps, better 

 be deferred till the forms in question had been bred through all their stages. But look 

 what follows : among the material gathered together he finds one specimen slightly 

 different from any of the named forms, and two other specimens which agreeing together 

 differ slightly in some other direction, and upon these three specimens two new species 

 are founded, although the divergence does not appear to be greater than in the case of 

 the forms which he has just lumped ; and thus we have a patent lumper and splitter 

 combined. 



What I have already said of the difficulty, especially for amateurs, of keeping up 

 with the literature of the subject leads me to suggest that it would be a great assistance 

 if an annual list of all thq new genera and species of North American insects, with, the 

 references as to where described, were published in the January number of the " Canadian 

 Entomologist," and I feel sure that our journal would thereby become of greatly 

 enhanced value to all working entomologists. 



The insufficient indexing of some publications is a frequent source of vexation and 

 loss of time, and adds materially to the difficulty of those who need to refer to articles 

 some time after their publication. If the index of every journal were begun with the issue 

 of the first number, each article being croBs indexed as soon as issued, the work would 

 not be heavy, and when the last number was in type a thoroughly satisfactory index 

 could be completed in a very short time. The late Dr. Lintner placed a very high value 

 upon a thoroughly complete index, and spared no pains to make the indexes of his Reports 

 as perfect as it was possible to make them. 



From 1868 to 1873 inclusive we had an Annual Record of American Entomology, 

 edited by Dr. Packard, with a number of leading authorities in the different orders as 

 associate editors. It was a very useful work, and it is, I think, much to be desired 

 that we should have some sort of an annual index of American Entomology. The diffi- 

 culties in its way are, I know, very great, but if it were possible for it to be undertaken 

 by the Division of Entomology of the Department of Agriculture at Washington, it would 

 be a great assistance to all the working entomologists of the continent. 



Another point of great importance is the care of important collections, and especially 

 the preservation and accessibility of types. It is not reasonable for any one to expect 

 types to be lent for study as the risk of loss or damage is too great, but they should cer- 

 tainly be accessible to those who visit for this purpose the museums or private collections 

 where these types are preserved. It is certainly disappointing when one has made an 

 expensive journey for the purpose of examining a collection, or studying certain types, to 

 find that one's journey is wholly or partly in vain, either through the caprice of a museum 

 curator, or through the collection being in too crowded a condition to permit of an exami- 

 nation being made with safety. 



To any one who augments his collection by either exchange or purchase, the different 

 styles of pinning and spreading specimens of Lepidoptera are matters of serious concern, 

 as one generally has to reset all specimens so obtained, unless one is willing to have one's 

 specimens at all sorts of heights, and spread in all sorts of ways. The late Mr. Morrison, 

 who collected so extensively for his patrons, used to insert his pins so that there was fre- 

 quently very little more than a quarter of an inch above the thorax, and as he used very 

 small sized pins, which bent easily, it was very difficult to handle the specimens without 

 knocking off the antennae. 



