50 



nearest allies, the Papilionidse. It remains only to say that a good deal of interesting: 

 reading will be found scattered through the portly volume, and that there are points in 

 the preface worthy of careful attention. About 500 species are described. 



The Ottawa Naturalist. Yol. i., Nos. 1 and 2, April and May, 1887. 



A welcome addition to our few Canadian serials on Natural Science ; we heartily^ 

 wish it abundant success. 



A Revision of the Lepidopterous Family Saturniidse. By John B. Smith. Proceedings 

 of the United States National Museum. Washington, Dec. 1886. 



A very valuable illustrated paper on this interesting family of moths. 



North American Lepidoptera : The Hawk Moths of North America, by A. Radcliffe 

 Grote, A.M. Printed by Homeyer and Meyer, Bremen, 1886. 



The above is the title of an interesting brochure by our old friend Prof. Grote, who 

 has done so much to advance our knowledge of the North American moths. The press 

 work is superb. For clearness of print, nice paper, and excellent taste in the selection 

 of contrasting type for the heading of the sections, this work is a model. 



After a graceful dedication to Prof. William Saunders, former editor of the Canadian 

 Entomologist, our author gives directions for collecting and preserving inse ts, followed 

 by a chapter on the relation and habits of the Sphingidai. He then takes up their classi- 

 cation, beginning with the sub-family Macroglossince. under which he includes the genera 

 llanaris, Lepisesia, Thymus, Enyo and Deidamia. Then follow the sub-family Chcero- 

 campince, including the genera Every x, Ampelophaga, Deilonche, Deilephila and Philr 

 ampelus ; the sub-family Smerinthince, including the genera Calasymbolus, ^Paonias, 

 Cressonia and Triptogon ; and the sub-family Sphinginoz, including Geratomia, Daremma, 

 Diludia, Dolba, Phhgethontius, Atreus, EUema, Sphinx and Dilophonota. 



Prof. Grote divides the time of the work on our lepidoptera into three periods : The 

 first including that of Abbot, Boisduval, the elder LeConte, Say, Peck, Harris, Gosse, 

 Kirtland, and their historian, Dr. J. G. Morris. The second period, the one which he 

 calls the " Renascence," is the period in which the American Lepidopterists catalogue the 

 different families of the lepidoptera and thus lay the foundation for present and future 

 discoveries. This period, which came to an end with the appearance of Grote's New 

 Check List, " was a time during which a great deal of work was performed with good 

 humor and at considerable self-sacrifice," and no one did his share of this work, which 

 was more or less drudgery, more cheerfully than did Mr. Grote himself. 



The author says that the writings of our entomologists have a flavouring of the 

 localities from which they emanate, thus, " in some way the scent of the Maine woods has 

 «ot into Prof. Fernald's writings," and we may say in return that a vein of poetry runs 

 all through this charming little work which we are now reviewing. 



OBITUARY. 



Since the last Annual Report appeared, our Society has sustained a serious loss by 

 the death of one of its most prominent and highly esteemed members, Mr. George J. 

 Bowles, of Montreal, for a great many years a member of the Society. He was also for 

 the greater part of the time on the Executive Council, and did valuable work, not only in 



