344 ARACHNOIDEA. 



CASE leLTs ; whilst another writer (D. B., in the ' West of Scotland 

 Horticultural Magazine' for November, 1865) states that on 

 examining some of the dried-up buds of the same season's growth 

 still remaining on the black currant bushes, he found the insects 

 in a further state of progress. A good many of them had three 

 pairs of legs, some of them with a pair of stout bristles, others 

 with several stout hairs, and some of them with two projecting 

 appendages at the termination of the abdomen. A few were also 

 seen with four pairs of legs, being probably another species. Both 

 of those having the six legs and the eight legs walked very nimbly, 

 and speedily made their way out of the field of the microscope, 

 and being so minute they could not easily be detected by the 

 unassisted eye. The young larvae were already to be found in the 

 buds forming for the next year's crop." 



It does not quite appear from this narrative whether Professor 

 Westwood himself saw the six-footed species spoken of above as 

 observed by his correspondent, T. C. This is an important point, 

 for on it must depend how much weight is to be given to the 

 observations which he reports. In a class of animals so minute 

 and so little studied, and where to an uninstructed eye most 

 different creatures may seem alike, we cannot be expected to ac- 

 cord the same faith to observations by anonymous correspondents 

 that we should give to those of Professor Westwood himself, 

 especially when these conclusions are unsupported by, not to 

 say opposed to, the observations of other eminent naturalists. 

 Professor Westwood, indeed, speaks of them as important, 

 but from some remarks which he goes on to make on the egg 

 question, it is obvious that he did not regard them as in any 

 respect conclusive. 



The Rev. Mr. Berkeley, whose strict accuracy and highly 

 educated eye gives unusual weight to any statement he makes, 

 was obviously inclined to beheve in the round bodies being 

 genuine eggs. He says (" Gardener's Chronicle," 1869) that, if 

 he mistook not, he saw very frequently, within the body of the 



