LXXVI 
as to give himself the trouble to decipher it, and makes it out quite 
satisfactorily to be « Clytus atlenuatus mihi. hab. in ins. mar. 
pacific. D. Latreille ». This specimen is also labelled by Chevrolat 
CPlagillimysus attenuatus Boisd. », and has likewise attached to it 
another label « Œmona lhumilis? Newm. » 
On comparison of this type with my series of species from the 
Sandwich islands it is clear that it does not agree with any of them. 
Its locality is notwithstanding probably the Hawaïan islands, but 
as it is quite possible the genus may occur in some of the other 
islands of Polynesia this is still a somewhat doubtful point; it is 
however certain from the evidence that Boisduval was wrong in 
saying it inhabits New-Holland; and it is almost equally clear that 
Chevrolat made a mistake in citing New-Zealand as the habitat; 
for Dejean’s label would not justify this, and it is more than pro- 
bable that Chevrolat’s error arose from the Œmona label which by 
some means had be come erroneously attached to this specimen ; 
Œmona being a New-Zealand genus : and it may also be considered 
as highly probable that Motschulsky having seen this same example 
with the Œmona label attached fell into the error of announcing 
that his genus was the same as Œnemona (meaning Œmona there 
being no Œnemona extant) of Newman. 
As regards the third species, Clytus distortus Chev., referred by 
Chevrolat with doubt to the genus, Bates has recently remarked 
(Biol. Cent. Am., Coleop., vol. V, p. 302) that the species cannot 
be referred to Veoclytus and his remarks render it equally certain 
that it is not a Plagithmysus. 
Horn'’s suggestion that Plagilhmysus is the same as Veoclytus is 
not a good one, the genus is well characterized by the peculiar form 
of the wing-cases, and the remarkable fact that there is no folding 
of the wings at the apex, so that they project beyond the wing- 
cases and look like a prolongation thereof. 
The errors I have here had occasion to clear up demonstrate the 
necessity of labelling carefully each example in a good collection 
of insects. It was no doubt by a carelessly attached label that 
Motschoulsky was led to assert Plagithmysus to be a synonym of 
Œmona, with which it has no affinity, and Chevrolat to publish 
New-Zealand as the locality for P. attenuatus. While it was pro- 
bably from want of a label that the false locality California has 
been in vogue for ?. pulverulentus for forty years. The fading of 
the label written seventy years ago by Dejean illustrates the neces- 
sity of adopting an indelible ink, and for some years past I have 
myself used carbon for writing the particulars to be connected with 
insects to be preserved. 
M. le Dr Alfred Dugèes, frère de notre collègue, nous adresse 
