The rmm HATHRAUST: 



A Penny Weekly Magazine of Natural History. 



No. 151. SEPTEMBER 30th, 1882. Vol. 3. 



ONCE A MONTH. 



MORE than a year ago we sug- 

 gested the propriety of changing 

 the issue of the Young Naturalist from 

 weekly to monthly. We were quite 

 aware when we made the suggestion 

 that there were advantages in a weekly 

 paper that could not be secured with a 

 monthly issue. The prompt record of 

 captures, we knew, might be of service 

 to those who wanted the species so 

 recorded; the opportunity of offering 

 ova in exchange might frequently be 

 had; and various other advantages 

 seemed to obtain over a monthly issue. 

 To counterbalance these, there were 

 matters to be taken into consideration 

 on the other side. The weekly issue 

 necessitated haste in the preparation 

 of each number. The careful revision 

 necessary for the spelling, &c., was 

 not easy to secure at all times. The 

 brevity of each number often made it 

 imperative to break up into two or 

 three parts, a paper whose consecutive- 

 ness gave no suitable place for such 

 breaks, or else compelled writers to 

 concentrate their ideas more than was 

 desirable in papers specially intended 



for beginners, who are not always 

 ready to take up a new suggestion 

 when very briefly enunciated. But 

 when we laid the matter before our 

 readers with reference to the proposed 

 change, the almost unanimous opinion 

 expressed by our readers was in favour 

 of the continuance of the Young Natu- 

 ralist as a weekly paper. We were of 

 opinion that advantage had not been 

 taken of the weekly issue in these ways 

 we have named, but hoping that when 

 attention had been called to the points 

 we should see a different result in the 

 future, we gave up our own opinion 

 for that of our readers and continued 

 the weekly issue. The question now 

 arises, has the opportunity been em- 

 braced since that time of making 

 prompt records, offering ova in ex- 

 change, or in any other way where 

 early publicity was imperative or ad- 

 vantageous. We are of opinion it has 

 not, and that, with certain exceptions, 

 nothing has appeared in our pages that 

 would not have been as useful in a 

 monthly. We think then that all the 

 advantages of a montlily issue have 

 been sacrificed without the gains the 



