[November, 1880. 
144 
The use of the vulgar English names of insects (and tlio book is full of them), 
at any rate without the scientific ones, is a mistake ; such names, given in the old 
time by mere collectors, served their purpose of distinguishing the insects they 
obtained, so far as their own collections were concerned, but had no basis of scientific 
arrangement. They are, therefore, of no service now, either with or without the 
scientific names, and although attempts have been made to retain them by some who 
should have known better, they are deservedly falling into disuse. If our author 
hopes to have his book read out of Britain, what can a foreigner understand by 
“ Bath White,” “ Queen of Spain,” “ Dark Arches,” “ Tawny -barred Angle,” &c. 
The literary composition is very curious. Thus, we find such terms as “symbol 
of war,” “brown horror of autumn,” “ambient ether,” “sun-god,” “domain of 
Flora,” &c. — all inappropriate in a work of scientific character. The style of the 
writing is ambitious, but the long, involved sentences, despite the surplus of sen- 
sational adjectives, are often obscure, to say the least. Thus, at page GO, we read, 
“We have shown that the battle of males for the female, that burns so fiercely in 
higher organizations, which gave antlers to the stag, horns to the bull, spurs to the 
cock, and incisive weapons to the fish, smoulders yet more intensely in mandibulate 
insects of the Orthoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, and Neuroptera, many of whom 
bite and devour one another.” At page 86, — “ If we consult a cabinet as regards 
terrestrial climate, we shall find that the rays of the sun impart a richness of tint, 
varying with the ardour of his beams, and that tropical species, which are diurnal, 
have a gaudiness compatible with the languor of a clime that becomes their guardian, 
expressed in the opaque, paint-like pigment that imparts a varnish to their dermal 
tints, with a heaviness to their external coverings.” Other similar deludes await the 
reader — these he must find for himself ; the climax of rhapsody is, perhaps, reached 
at page 169, thus: — “In the existing rage for cheap music, when flashing lights, 
impassioned notes, and sweet warblings greet the man of business homeward 
wending, and drive far into the sorrows of the night, it is scarcely to be wondered, 
refrains so full of small peaceful harmonies as those complaining notes (of grass- 
hoppers), that each autumn echo beneath the blithe ring of the mowers, should 
continue a study for the poet and musician. And it is thus we not only hear of 
them blending in the luxuriant tide of song on Transatlantic pianos, but what is 
more generally feasible, find them adapted to rhythmic notations by admiring fre- 
quenters of the green banks of the Rhine and Alpine glaciers, where they possibly 
lend much to the charms of the scenery. * * * * Nor are the pastorals of our 
insular troubadours to be despised. How often do the young in years, who listlessly 
recline in zepliyry hay-fields, take lovers’ walks or meditative strolls, receive brisk 
overtures, which haunt the mind and whisper back the cheerful voices of seasons 
that have flown !” 
On the other hand, we have expressions of wonderful na'ivetd. Thus, at page 
39, we read : — “ An example of the Privet Hawk Moth I had killed in the usual 
manner, and had assumed to be dead ;” and, at page 295 : “ In the large voracious 
Wart Biter, a parrot-like transition (of colour) after emergence serves to develop an 
invisible pattern of brown spots, which renders the individuals to human optics 
considerably more conspicuous and suited to recognise and reproduce their kind.” 
The printing is clear, but there are several typographical errors, such as “accept ” 
for “ except,” “ blue-fiy ” for “ blow-fly,” “ Leucanidce ” for “ Lucanidce,” &c. Often 
names of insects are in Roman instead of Italic type ; and such eccentricities occur 
as, for instance, “ aphrodite ” with a small initial letter, and “ Brassicai ” with a 
large one ; for all which blemishes we trust some one besides the author is 
accountable. 
