240 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



as their supreme end. Yes, life is universal, and eternal, for time is 

 one of its factors. Yesterday the moon, to-day the earth, to-morrow 

 Jupiter. In space there are both cradles and tombs. The red carbon 

 stars will soon be dead ; the hydrogen stars, like Vega and Sirius, are 

 the stars of the future ; Procyon, Capella, Arcturus are the stars of 

 the present. Aldebaran seems to be already an autumn fruit. Let us 

 open the eyes of our understanding, and let us look beyond ourselves 

 in the infinite expanse at life and intelligence in all its degrees in 

 endless evolution." 



We have received from Mr. J. W. Tutt a reprint of his articles on 

 the " Migration and Dispersal of Insects," which originally appeared 

 in the ' Entomologists' Record.' This booklet consists of a recapitula- 

 tion, in an orderly form, of many of the records made by various 

 travellers and naturalists on the subject, and hence is a very valuable 

 contribution to a knowledge of the observed facts, on which a future 

 explanation of the phenomena can alone be based. It is published by 

 Elliot Stock. 



We are glad to find that the galleries of our great Natural History 

 Museum are not only a resort for the public at Eastertime, but also 

 that the visitors on Easter Mondays show an increase. The following 

 figures speak for themselves : — 



April 16th, 1900, visitors 11,837. 



April 8th, 1901, „ 11,595. 



March 31st, 1902, ,, 11,069. 



April 13th, 1903, „ 13,114. 



Magpies, which abound in the environs of Moscow, have a bad 

 time in store for them. One Berlin firm alone has given an order 

 for the immediate supply of 80,000 of these birds, which will be shot 

 to provide trimmings for ladies' hats. Russia has recently been 

 obtaining an unenviable notoriety for the slaughter of wild birds for 

 millinery purposes. Archangel is a well-known centre for the export 

 of the wings and feathers of birds. Black-throated Divers' necks are 

 sold in vast quantities there for trimmings for ladies' cloaks, muffs, 

 boas, &c. The wings of the Willow-Grouse also are brought down in 

 large cargoes to Archangel, one such cargo recently amounting to ten 

 tons. The white plumage of the Willow-Grouse has the unusual 

 quality that it can be dyed any colour and used for ladies' hats. — 

 Daily Mail. 



