390 



stalks should also be plowed under, or be otherwise destroyed before 

 winter is past. To neglect these precautious may be ruinous. There 

 are, perhaps, more borers now in your field than you suspect. — [W. J. 

 Thompson in The Louisiana Planter, ISoy. 2, 1889, Yol. 3, p. 274.— The 

 insect is probably Chilo saccharalis. 



IMPORTATION OF HESSIAN FLY PARASITES. 



With the assistance of Mr. Fred Enock, of London, England, we 

 hope to import during the summer some living specimens of Semiotel- 

 lus nigripes, a Russian parasite of the Hessian fly, in order to endeavor 

 to acclimatize it in this country. Mr. Enock is rearing it extensively 

 and hopes to be able to send us a good supply. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON. 



April 3, 1890.— Mr. B. E. Fernow was elected an active member of the society. 



Mr. Fox read a paper on a small group of spiders forming the subgenus Ceratinella 

 of the genus Erigone. The subgenus includes about seventeen species distinguished 

 by the presence of a shield on the abdomen. All the specimens were collected east 

 of the Alleghanies by Messrs. Marx and Fox, and were found fully developed at all 

 seasons of the year. The paper was illustrated with drawings and a collection of the 

 spiders was shown. Discussion followed by Messrs. Marx and Fox. 



Mr. Schwarz read a paper entitled "Labeling Specimens," in which he described 

 the systems of labeling employed in the case of entomological collections, dealing 

 particularly with the systematic collection of the specialist. The various labels em- 

 ployed were described and examples of some of them were shown. The paper called, 

 forth considerable discussion which was participated in by Messrs. Riley, Mann, 

 Schwarz, Marx, and Fox. 



May 1, 1890. — The committee having in charge the preparation for publication of 

 a list of the insect fauna of the District of Columbia made a partial report, which was 

 discussed at length. 



Tbe name of Mr. Townsend was added to the subcommittee on Diptera, and that 

 of Mr. Marlatt to the subcommittee on Hymenoptera. 



A revision of the subcommittees will be made at the next meeting. 



Mr. Townsend read a list of eighty-seven species of Heteroptera collected by him in 

 southern Michigan, with some brief notes and dates of occurrence. One species, 

 Corimelama niiiduloides Wolff, was taken in a nest of Formica schaufussi Mayr. 



Mr. Townsend also presented a paper on "Some insects affecting certain forest 

 trees," mostly from Michigan, recording upwards of a hundred Coleoptera and a few 

 of other orders, affecting either the foliage or the sound or decaying trunks of oak, 

 hickory, elm, beech, linden, butternut, iron- wood (Carpinus), willow, hazel, etc. 



These papers were discussed by Messrs. Schwarz and Riley. 



Mr. Dodge read a paper on Artificial Silk, describing the Count de Chardonnet's 

 method, as exhibited at the late Paris Exposition, of making from cellulose a substance 

 closely resembling silk. A detailed account of the process of manufacture was given, 

 illustrated with a figure of the device for producing the thread, and a sample of the 

 fiilk was exhibited. 



Discussion followed by Messrs Philip Walker, Riley, Amory Austin, and others. 



Mr. Marx presented some " Arachnologicai notes" in which he discussed the com- 

 parative anatomy of the spinning glands of spiders. The relation of these to the ex- 

 ternal spinning organs or spinnerets and the importance of both in classification were 

 explained. Careful drawings of the parts discussed were shown. 



C. L. Marlatt, 



Recording Secretary. 



c 



