JJo. 3.]I While Insect Wax in India. 95 



solution of the wax in alcohol, when spread upon surfaces of paper, cloth, 

 and wood, left, on drying, a thin coat of resinous matter, which, however, 

 was not bright or smooth, so this solution does not afford a good varnish. 

 The wax, when united with olive oil, became whiter in colour, and as soft 

 as bees' wax, but it burnt, as before, with an unsteady light, smoking 

 and producing a resinous smell. Dr. Pearson concludes that bees' wax 

 and white wax are homogeneous substances, formed of very much the 

 same constituent parts, the proportion of these parts however being very 

 different in the two substances. 



According to an account published in the Journal of the Agri. -Horti- 

 cultural Society of India, Volume V, page 76 (1873— ?8), the species was 

 again brought to notice in the year 1875, when Mr. Peppe forwarded 

 specimens which he had found upon pepul twigs in Chota Nagpur, and 

 noticed that he had also found it upon mango and arjoon trees. The 

 specimens were identified by Mr. F. Moore, who also had the wax ana- 

 lysed, the following being an abstract of the analysis furnished by him :— 



" Wax, of a dull opaque pale brown colour. The outer shell, darker and somewhat 

 translucent. Moderately hard and brittle, of somewhat pleasant smell. On crushing 

 in a mortar minute drops of water made their appearance. On heating it spluttered 

 much, owing to the disengagement of steam. At 55°C- it melted to a clear liquid with 

 a slightly flaky deposit. 0'5868 grm., burnt, left an unweigh;ible trace of ash. 

 Absolute alcohol dissolved 34 per cent. Boiling absolute alcohol dissolved 98'08 per 

 cent. In benzine the wax was very easily soluble, with the exception of a little 

 brownish matter. In ether it dissolved freely, but not entirely. In essence of tur- 

 pentine, and also in carbonic sulphide, it was very sparingly soluble. The percentage 

 of water varied from 11'02 to 13"16 in the specimens examined. Organic analysis 

 gave, in 100 parts of the wax, carbon from 78'57 to 78'79, hydrogen 13-46 to 13'08, 

 oxygen 7'97 to 8*13, and the wax therefore was supposed to consist of a compound of 

 13 atoms of carbon, 26 atoms of hydrogen, and 1 atom of oxygen." 



The insect does not seem to have been again noticed until 1889, 

 when a few specimens were sent to the Indian Museum from the Kangra 

 Valley, where they were found in small numbers upon tea bushes. In 

 this case the specimens were identified by Mr. W. M. Maskell, but noth- 

 ing was ascertained regarding the habits or transformations of the insect. 



There is some confusion in the synonymy of the insect which pro- 

 duces the white sugary secretion in India 



PhKOMNIA MAEGINELLA. i , •. • i 1,1, , ^. , , , . ' 



but it IS undoubtedly the Cigale phalenoide- 

 verte, described and figured in the year 1788 by Stoll. {Clgal,^. 50, pi. 

 11, fig. 54), and quoted in 1791 by Olivier {Encyclop, Meth. Ins. vi, p. 

 575, No. 43), under the name of Fulgora marginella, also in 1862 by 

 Stal (Ofvers. K. Sv. Akad. Stockholm, xix, p. 490), under the name of 



