THE SUBSTITUTE. 
219 
TO COBRESPONDENTS. 
All communications to be authen- 
ticated by the name of the writer, 
and to be addressed To the Edi- 
tor OF ‘The Substitute,’ 9, 
Devonshire Street, Bishops- 
OATE Street, London, N.E. 
B. B. — We cannot answer your 
question positively, but we believe 
all cedar wood is liable to the 
same objection. 
G. G. — Your application is 
under consideration. 
COMMUNICATIONS. 
Exchanges with Foreign Ento- 
mologists. — [We have had handed 
to us the following extract from 
. a letter from M. E. Fologne, of 
Brussels. We are happy in 
ithiuking that we have been the 
■ means of inducing a correspond- 
I ence with this gentleman, and 
hope that such communications 
imay become more frequent be- 
( tween British entomologists and 
I their continental brethren.] — “I 
beg to thank you for the service 
; you have rendered me by insert- 
1 ing my letter in ‘ The Substitute.’ 
I am now in communieation with 
'several entomologists in different 
j parts of England, and I have 
already enriched my collection 
' with several species. I have even 
I received so many offers of Lepi- 
doptera in exchange that I am 
unable at present to satisfy all 
demands.” 
The Testimonial to the Rev. J. 
Greene. — Sir, — When it is pro- 
posed to confer honour upon any 
person not wholly undeserving of 
it, the “ayes” are pretty sure to 
carry the day ; for if there be any 
who dissent from the proposition, 
the feeling that it would be un- 
gracious to appear to detract from 
acknowledged merit generally 
stops their mouths. Now, sir, 
one of the features which charac- 
terise the present slate of society 
is a rage for testimonials. Any 
one who has been supposed to do 
his duty, or to confer benefit on a 
greater or less portion of his fel- 
low-creatures, must needs be pre- 
sented with a testimonial. Even 
were this literally the case, — were 
the most deserving men always 
selected, — will you allow me to 
suggest that the principle is an 
utterly wrong one ? It is part and 
parcel of that system of doing 
good, and being good, for the sake 
of reward, which is the bane of so 
much of our secular and theologi- 
cal teaching now-a-days. And yet 
virtue, in whatever line, is surely 
its own best reward. Surely no 
testimonial ever conveyed a plea- 
sure equal to the conscious pride 
of having done good and helped 
others, and being indebted to no 
man. There are many periods in 
a man’s life in which he has good 
reason to exclaim, “ Save me from 
my friends!” Those who get up 
testimonials on every possible oc- 
casion little think how they often 
give real pain to those whom they 
delight to honour. The feeling 
that the proposition is inappro- 
priate, — one’s own merit really 
undeserving of such pre-eminent 
recognition, — on the one side, and 
the fear of being ungracious or 
unkind on the other, are anything 
but agreeable to a sensitive mind. 
u 2 
