Page:Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal Vol 1.djvu/367

1832.] One box should be devoted to large Coleoptera, to avoid the injury their weight would cause to the smaller species if they should get loose in travelling.

Insects should not be put in the magazine boxes until they are dead ; they may then be put as close as possible to save space.

When the feet or antennze prevent the specimens from being closed up, they should be placed for a time in a humid atmosphere, in a covered saucepan with a few drops of warm water, or in moistened sand : — the limbs will then become relaxed, and may be easily brought close to the body, where they must be held by pins until they have dried in the proper attitude.

For preserving Coleoptera, pinning is decidedly the best method, it is only large black hard insects that can be preserved in spirits : cotton, sand, sawdust, &c. are of no use whatever.

If a rare insect loses a leg or antenna, it should be carefully wrapped in paper, and pinned by the side of the mutilated animal. It is useless to collect grass- hoppers, flies, spiders, or bugs. These insects are very difficult of preservation, often too very large, and therefore only encumber the boxes uselessly.

When a box is sufficiently full of Coleoptera firmly fixed with pins, according to the foregoing directions, it should be accurately closed by pasting paper over all the joints, so as to prevent moisture, dust, or other insects from penetrating.

The above directions are translated from a paper transmitted to the Asia- tic Society by a zealous French entomologist, Mons. Petit de la Saussaye, chef du bureau des travaux au Ministere de la Marine, at Paris, who was desirous of ob- taining specimens of the Coleopterous insects from India, and who handsomely offered in return, duplicates from his own extensive cabinet. The following ex- tract from M. Petit's letter to the Secretary As. Soc. read on the 4th Jan. may tempt some of our correspondents to comply with his request.

" Amateur zele" de l'etude de l'entomologie, je possede une des collections de Paris les plus riches en coleopteres, famille dont je m'occupe principalement.

Les relations que j'ai avec plusieurs parties de l'Afrique et de l'Am£rique me donnentles moyens de faire des ^changes avec les musses Strangers, et j'ai ose" es- percr que vous voudriez bien m'admettre au nombre des personnes qui correspon- dent de cette maniere, avec le celebre titablissement que vous dirigez.

L'avantage que je puis vous offrir consisteroit moins dans la vari^te des especes que je vous adresserai, que dans l'exactitude de la classification. Ma collection est nomm^e d'apres le systeme adopte" par M. le Compte Dejean, dont lesouvrages sur les coleopteres sont connus de tous les entomologistes, et les envois que je fais sont classes avec le plus grand soin, ce qui facilite beaucoup a mes correspondants l'arrangement et l'etude des insectes. De votre cote, Monsieur, il vous seroit bien facile d'enrichir ma collection, car je n'ai presque rien des belles contr^es soumises a vos explorations, et les especes tuoinsrares auraient deja pour moi le nitrite de la nouveauté" Collections or letters to M. Petit may be addressed under cover a Mr. le Ministre de la Marine, a Paris.