THE MUSEUM. 
31 
New York city, for the electrotypes of these in¬ 
teresting objects. 
The cost of printing this work has been so great 
that only 250 copies have, thus far, been issued, a 
few of which will be sold for $6.00 each. 
Our Birds in Their Haunts , from the pen of 
Rev. J. Hibbert Langille, of Buffalo, is the latest 
novelty in bird literature. This is a charming 
volume of more than six hundred pages, and written 
in such easy, fluent language, as not to be beyond 
the comprehension of the veriest tyro in matters or¬ 
nithological. It is a book for everybody. Rich in the 
details of migration, instinct, analogy of nidification, 
and specialized forms and adaptations of structure 
in birds, it cannot but commend itself to the work¬ 
ing naturalist, and must sooner or later be upon his 
shelf. To the gospel ministry it also especially 
addresses itself, and claims recognition, as it is one 
of the few scientific books of the present age that 
notes evidences of a Designing Intelligence in the 
works of Creation. As a valuable contribution to 
the science of birds we hail it, and wish for it a 
world wide popularity. 
The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and 
Biography , always a welcome visitor, is issued four 
times a year by the Historical Society of Pennsyl¬ 
vania, at 1300 Locust St., Phila. The first number 
of Vol. IX (April, 1885), just received, contains a 
sketch of Sir John St. Clair, Bt. (with steel portrait), 
by Charles R. Hildeburn, and a valuable paper on 
American Languages, and Why we Should Study 
Them, by Dr. Daniel G. Brinton. The department 
of Notes and Queries is full of interest. 
The Second Volume of the Magazine of Western 
History opens with the May number. Besides a 
large amount of interesting matter, it contains an 
instructive article by C. C. Royce, entitled An 
Inquiry into the Identity and History of the Shaw¬ 
nee Indians, and another on Indian Geographical 
Names, by Russell Errett. Col. Charles Whittlesey, 
the veteran archaeologist, also contributes an import¬ 
ant paper (illustrated by a number of portraits) on 
the Personnel of the First Geological Survey of Ohio. 
Published at 145 St. Clair St., Cleveland, Ohio. 
lltr Agassis 
Philadelphia, Pa., 
May 7th, 1885. 
To the Editor of The Museum : 
Dear Sir :—A few days ago I observed, in a 
small stagnant pond near the city, some small, lively 
objects in the water, near the bank, a number of 
which I collected in a bottle, for examination. They 
resembled, to the naked eye, minute clams with 
double shells, and swam or jumped rapidly through 
the water in a vertical position. On submitting 
them to an experienced naturalist, I find that they 
are crustaceans—a species of Cypris, of the sub¬ 
class Entomostraca. Although I had passed the 
pond many times before, I had never noticed these 
interesting little creatures, which this season are 
present in great numbers. I should like to know 
whether any other members of the A. A. have ever 
observed them, and, if so, what they know about 
them. W. S. B. 
Mr. Editor :—Will you allow me a small space 
to describe some observations I made during last 
summer ? I spent two weeks in observing the 
habits of the “ plant-louse ” or aphis, which I had 
read about, but never noticed. On the flower stalk 
of a Yucca plant or “ Spanish bayonet,” in our front 
yard, were myriads of these little black (not green) 
“ ant cows,” seemingly feeding on the juicy stem of 
the plant. Quantities of the common black ants 
came up the stalk, and approaching the aphides 
seemed to stroke them with their feelers, when the 
little bugs gave forth a little drop of transparent 
liquid, which the ants drank eagerly. This per¬ 
formance was repeated many times in an hour, the 
ants seeming to enjoy it very much and the little 
“ cows ” not to object in the least. 
We like the first number of the Museum very 
much and have no doubt that it will become very 
popular with the Association. H. S. 
Alan F. Gentry, Esq., the young Assistant Cura¬ 
tor of the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences, 
describes, in the last signature of the Proceedings 
of that institution, a new species of jay, which he 
calls Cyanocorax Heilprini, in honor of Prof. 
Angelo Heilprin. 
