CORRESPONDENCE COURSE IN ENTOMOLOGY. 



Conducted under the Auspices of The Agassiz Association. 



Lesson VIII. Prices of Lepidoptera. 



AN IMPORTANT QUESTION. 



"What price shall I charge for my moths and butterflies?" This ques- 

 tion bobs up so persistently, so frequently and is so very important that it may 

 as well be touched in this as in a later lesson. Please note that I say "touched" 

 instead of "answered." As a matter of fact each pupil must answer this ques- 

 tion for himself, taking into consideration his locality, the material he can offer, 

 his environments and necessities. Collectors have always made their own prices 

 or have allowed the dealers to make them. To be exact, the dealer generally 

 requires all the different collectors to name prices and then purchases of the 

 one who makes the lowest bid. There is nothing novel in this. It is a rule 

 which prevails in all kind of business. The seller asks as much and the buyer 

 pays as little as possible. 



THE ORDINARY METHOD. 



If you wish to follow in the beaten track and do as other collectors have 

 always done you will prepare a printed or typewritten list of what you have 

 to offer, naming the price of each species. This you will send to all the dealers 

 and purchasers whose names you can obtain. It will pay you to advertise your 

 list in any or all of the entomological journals. In this manner you will reach 

 a vast number of museums, scientists, dealers, collectors, amateurs and lovers 

 of nature who will write you if you have things which they need, and if your 

 prices are satisfactory. You will, of course, be prepared to fill orders for single 

 specimens or "singles" as they are termed, unless you expressly state in your 

 advertisement some limit as to the size of the orders you will accept. If your 

 prices are quite low or your species quite desirable you will soon find a customer 

 who will purchase the greater part of your output. 



PUBLISHED PRICE-LISTS. 



As heretofore mentioned (see page 12), Ward's Natural Science Estab- 

 lishment publishes a price-list of moths and butterflies. Each pupil should obtain 

 this list, as it shows what is considered a fair valuation for each specimen. Since 

 orders are received for single specimens, the prices named are not unreasonable. 

 It is doubtful if any one could fill orders for singles at a less figure. European 

 houses publish price-lists and their quotations agree fairly well with Ward's. 

 When a purchaser desires only one or at most a pair of a given species, the 

 bother of filling these small orders justifies almost any price. There has been 

 no reduction in prices worth mentioning during the last half century and it is 



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