Footnotes:[4]In North America, Kläger pins and Karlsbad pins can be obtained through Mr. John Ackhurst, 78 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, N. Y., and possibly also through Messrs. Blake & Co., 55 North Seventh street, Philadelphia, Pa. The Vienna pins and the Minutien-Nadeln have to be ordered direct through the manufacturer, Mr. Miller.[5]Montgomery & Co., 105 Fulton street, New York City.[6]This applies to the use of short pins, which should subsequently be connected through strips of pith with longer pins. For some of the larger micros the long pins may be used directly and a different spreading board employed.
Footnotes:[4]In North America, Kläger pins and Karlsbad pins can be obtained through Mr. John Ackhurst, 78 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, N. Y., and possibly also through Messrs. Blake & Co., 55 North Seventh street, Philadelphia, Pa. The Vienna pins and the Minutien-Nadeln have to be ordered direct through the manufacturer, Mr. Miller.
Footnotes:
[4]In North America, Kläger pins and Karlsbad pins can be obtained through Mr. John Ackhurst, 78 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, N. Y., and possibly also through Messrs. Blake & Co., 55 North Seventh street, Philadelphia, Pa. The Vienna pins and the Minutien-Nadeln have to be ordered direct through the manufacturer, Mr. Miller.
[5]Montgomery & Co., 105 Fulton street, New York City.
[5]Montgomery & Co., 105 Fulton street, New York City.
[6]This applies to the use of short pins, which should subsequently be connected through strips of pith with longer pins. For some of the larger micros the long pins may be used directly and a different spreading board employed.
[6]This applies to the use of short pins, which should subsequently be connected through strips of pith with longer pins. For some of the larger micros the long pins may be used directly and a different spreading board employed.
Apparatus and Methods.—The collections of most value, especially to our various agricultural colleges and experiment stations will be largely of a biologic and economic character, and the interest attaching to a knowledge of the life history of insects will induce many collectors to build up independent biologic collections. Very much of this biological material will be alcoholic, and though many immature states of insects may be preserved by dry processes, still the bulk must needs be kept in liquid. This material may, when not abundant, be kept with the general systematic collection, but experience has shown that it is better to make a separate biological collection, and this is recommended especially for State institutions where the collections may be expected to attain some considerable proportions. In the case of such collections it is very desirable to adopt some method of securing the vials in such a manner that they can easily be transferred from one place to anotherand fastened in the boxes or drawers employed for pinned insects. For directions in this regard I reproduce from an article on the subject inInsect Life, Vol.ii, pp. 345, 346, which was republished, with slight changes, from my annual report for 1886 as Honorary Curator.[7]
Vials, Stoppers and Holders.—The vials in use to preserve such specimens as must be left in alcohol or other liquids are straight glass tubes of varying diameters and lengths, with round bottom and smooth even mouth. The stoppers in use are of rubber, which, when tightly put into the vial, the air being nearly all expelled, keep the contents of the vial intact and safe for years.
Various forms of bottles are used in museums for the preservation of minute alcoholic material. I have tried the flattened and the square and have studied various other forms of these vials; but I am satisfied that those just described, which are in use by Dr. Hagen in the Cambridge Museum, are, all things considered, the most convenient and economical. A more difficult problem to solve was a convenient and satisfactory method of holding these vials and of fastening them into drawers or cases held at all angles, from perpendicular to horizontal. Most alcoholic collections are simply kept standing, either in tubes with broad bases or in tubes held in wooden or other receptacles; but for a biologic collection of insects something that could be used in connection with the pinned specimens and that could be easily removed, as above set forth, was desirable. After trying many different contrivances I finally prepared a block, with Mr. Hawley's assistance, which answers every purpose of simplicity, neatness, security, and convenience. It is, so far as I know, unique, and will be of advantage for the same purpose to other museums. It has been in use now for the past six years, and has been of great help and satisfaction in the arrangement and preservation of the alcoholic specimens, surpassing all other methods for ease of handling and classifying.
The blocks are oblong, one-fourth of an inch thick, the ends (c c,Fig. 112) beveled, the sides either beveled or straight, the latter preferable. They vary in length and breadth according to the different sizes of the vials, and are painted white. Upon the upper side of these blocks are fastened two curved clamps of music wire (b b), forming about two-thirds of a complete circle. The fastening to the block is simple and secure. A bit of the wire of proper length is first doubled and then by a special contrivance the two ends are bent around a mandrel so as to form an insertion point or loop. A brad awl is used to make a slot in the block, into which this loop is forced (e,Fig. 112, 5), a drop of warm water being first put into the slot to soften the wood, which swells and closes so firmly around the wire that considerable force is required to pull it out. Four pointed wire nails (d d d d), set into the bottom so as to project about one-fourth inch, serve tohold the block to the cork bottom of the case or drawer in which it is to be placed. The method of use is simple and readily seen from the accompanying figures, which represent the block from all sides.
The advantages of this system are the ease and security with which the block can be placed in or removed from a box; the ease with which a vial can be slipped into or removed from the wire clamps; the security with which it is held, and the fact that practically no part of the contents of the vial is obscured by the holder—the whole being visible from above.
The beveled ends of the block may be used for labeling, or pieces of cleancardboardcut so as to project somewhat on all sides may be used for this purpose, and will be held secure by the pins between the block and the cork of the drawers.
see captionFig.112.—Vial holder; 1, block, with vial, beveled on allsides;2, do., beveled only on ends; 3, block, end view; 5, do., section; 4, 6, do., side views;a, block;b, spring-wire clamps;c, beveled ends of block;d, pointed wire nails;e, point of insertion of clamp. (Lettering on all figures corresponds.)
Fig.112.—Vial holder; 1, block, with vial, beveled on allsides;2, do., beveled only on ends; 3, block, end view; 5, do., section; 4, 6, do., side views;a, block;b, spring-wire clamps;c, beveled ends of block;d, pointed wire nails;e, point of insertion of clamp. (Lettering on all figures corresponds.)
The use of rubber stoppers in this country was first instituted by Dr. H. A. Hagen in connection with the Cambridge biological collection, and he has made some very careful records to determine the durability of such stoppers. From an examination of some seven thousand vials with rubber stoppers, two-thirds of which had been in use for from ten to twelve years, he comes to the conclusion that less than one in a thousand gives out every year after twelve years' use, and in the first six years probably only one out of two thousand. Stoppers of large size keep much longer than those of small size. American rubber stoppers are all made of vulcanized India rubber and have the disadvantage of forming small crystals of sulphur about the stopper, which become loosened and attach themselves to the specimens. It is supposed that pure rubber-stoppers used for chemical purposes would not present thisdisadvantage, which may be obviated, however, or very much reduced, if the stoppers are washed or soaked, preferably in hot water, for an hour or two at least.
If stoppers are stored for a considerable time and exposed to the air they become very hard and unfit for use, and Dr. Hagen has drawn attention to a method recommended by Professor W. Hemple, of Dresden, Saxony, of preventing them from becoming thus hardened. He says that to keep rubber stoppers or rubber apparatus of any sort elastic, they should be stored in large glass jars in which an open vessel containing petroleum is placed. This treatment prevents the evaporation of the fluids which are fixed in the rubber in the process of vulcanization. It is better also to keep the light from the jar. To soften stoppers which have already become hardened, they should be brought together in a jar with sulphuret of carbon until they are pliable and afterward kept as recommended above.
In the use of the rubber stopper the novice may find some difficulty in inserting it in a vial filled with alcohol. The compression of the alcohol, or alcohol and air when the vial is not completely filled, forces the stopper out, and this is true whether of rubber or cork. If a fine insect pin is placed beside the cork when this is thrust into the bottle, the air or liquid displaced by the cork will escape along the pin and the latter may then be removed and the cork remains securely in position.
If cork stoppers have been used the vials may be stored in large quantities together in jars filled with alcohol. This will prevent evaporation of the alcohol from the vials, and the specimens may be preserved indefinitely. This is only desirable in the storage of duplicate specimens and unarranged material and is not recommended as a substitute for the use of the rubber stopper. With cork stoppers evaporation can be in a measure prevented if the cork is first anointed with the petroleum preparation known as vaseline. This substance is practically unaffected at ordinary temperature and is sparingly soluble in cold alcohol. Experiments with it have shown that at ordinary spring and summer temperatures there is no appreciable loss of alcohol from vials and jars.
My old method of keeping alcoholic specimens, which I abandoned for the method outlined above, was fairly serviceable, inexpensive, and warrants description.
I had special folding boxes constructed resembling in exterior appearance a large insect box. The bottom of the box was solid and was made by gluing together two 1½-inch planks.
Holes extending nearly through the lower plank and of various sizes to accommodate vials of different diameters were bored as closely together as the wood justified without splitting or breaking.
The holes were numbered consecutively and the vials when placed in them were numbered to correspond; the box also had its number, and in thenotes the vial was referred to by number of box and vial thus,3⁄73(box 3, vial 73). The vial should project one-half to 1 inch above the hole, and should be loose enough to provide for the swelling of the wood in moist weather.
To protect the vials a cover having a depth of about 1½ inch was hinged to the back and secured in front by hook-and-eye fastenings.
This method of storing vials is satisfactory enough for private collections, but for larger public collections is not so suitable.
see captionFig.113.—The Marx tray for alcoholic specimens (original.)
Fig.113.—The Marx tray for alcoholic specimens (original.)
see captionFig.114.—Vials usedin the Marx tray (original.)
Fig.114.—Vials usedin the Marx tray (original.)
A rather convenient and inexpensive method of storing vials is that used by Dr. Marx. In this method the vials are stored in a wooden frame, shown atFig. 113. The top piece of the tray into which the vials are thrust has a cork center, in which holes corresponding to the size of the vials are made with a gun-wad punch. The outer end of the tray bears a label or labels describing the material in the tray. The vials used by Dr. Marx are of thinner glass than those which I recommend and flare slightly at the top, as shown in the accompanying illustrations. They are made in various sizes to accommodate larger and smaller specimens. A vial thrust into the hole punched in the cork rests on the bottom piece of the tray, the flange or neck preventing it from sliding through. These trays are arranged on shallow shelves in a case or cabinet, especially constructed for the purpose and a large quantity of material may be stored by their use in small compass. The use of the cork center piece in the upper part of the tray is not a necessity, and a wooden piece may be used in which holes are bored with abitof proper size.
Preserving Micro-larvæ in Alcohol.—The following is quoted from Packard's “Entomology for Beginners,” for which it was translated from the “Deutsche Ent. Zeitg.,” 1887, Heft I:
see captionFig.115.—Method of preserving minute larvæ etc.(After Dewitz.)
Fig.115.—Method of preserving minute larvæ etc.(After Dewitz.)
“Dr. H. Dewitz mounts the larvæ and pupæ of Microlepidoptera, and also the early stages of other small insects, in the following way: The insects are put into a bottle with 95 per cent alcohol. Manylarvæturn black in alcohol, but boiling them in alcohol in a test tube will bleach them. They may then be finally placed in glass tubes as small and thin as possible, varying from 0.003 to 0.006 meter in diameter, according to the size of the insects. About 0.07 meter'slength of a tube is melted over a spirit lamp, and the tube filled three-quarters full with 95 per cent alcohol, the insects placed within and the contents of the tube heated at the end still open, and then closed by being pulled out with another piece of glass tubing. After the glass has been held a few minutes in the hand until it is slightly cooled off, the end closed last is once more held over the lamp so that the points may be melted together, and this end of the glass may be finished. During the whole time from the closure of the tube until the complete cooling of the glass it should be held obliquely in the hand, so that the alcohol may not wet the upper end, for if the tube is too full it is difficult to melt it, as the steam quickly expanding breaks through the softened mass of glass. The tube may be mounted by boring a hole through a cork stopper of the same diameter as the glass. The stopper is cut into the shape of a cube, a strong insect pin put through it, and the glass tube inserted into the hole. It can then be pinned in the insect box or drawer, near the imago, so that the free end of the glass may touch the bottom, while the other end stands up somewhat; while to keep the tube in place the free end resting on the bottom may be fastened with two strong insect pins. The specimens thus put up can easily be examined with a lens, and if they need to be taken out for closer examination the tube can be opened and closed again after a little practice.”
Preservative Fluids.—The principal liquids in which soft-bodied insects may be successfully preserved are the following:
Alcohol.—As indicated in the foregoing portions of this work, alcohol is the standard preservative used for soft-bodied specimens, and may be used either full strength or diluted with water. Diluted alcohol should always be first used with larvæ, since the pure alcohol shrivels them up. The weak spirits can afterwards be replaced by strong, for permanent preservation.
Alcohol and White Arsenic.—The method of preserving insects recommended by Laboulbène and quoted in Packard's Entomology for Beginners, consists in plunging the insects in the fresh state into a preservative liquid, consisting of alcohol with an excess of the common white arsenic of commerce. The larva placed in this mixture absorbs .003 of its own weight, and when removed and pinned is safe from the attacks of museum pests. This liquid is said not to change the colors, blue, green or red of beetles, if they are not immersed for more than twenty-four hours. This treatment is applicable to the orders Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and Orthoptera. If the insect is allowed to stay in this mixture for a considerable time, say three or four weeks, and then removed and dried, it becomes very hard and brittle and can not be used for dissection or study, but makes a good cabinet specimen. The white deposit of arsenic which will appear on drying can be washed offwith alcohol.
Alcohol and Corrosive Sublimate.—The same author recommends another preparation consisting of alcohol with a variable quantity of corrosive sublimate added, the strength of the solution varying from 100 parts of alcohol to 1 part of corrosive sublimate for the strongest, to one-tenth of 1 part of sublimate in 100 parts of alcohol for the weakest. The insects are allowed to remain in this mixture not longer than two hours before drying. The last-described preparation is said to preserve the specimens from mold. Both of these solutions are very poisonous and should be used with care.
Two Liquids to preserve Form and Color.—Professor Packard also quotes the formula of A. E. Verrill for preserving insects in their natural color and form. Two formulas are given; the first consists of 2½ pounds of common salt and 4 ounces of niter dissolved in a gallon of water and filtered. The specimens should be prepared for permanent preservation in this solution by being previously immersed in a solution consisting of a quart of the first solution and 2 ounces of arsenite of potash in a gallon of water. Professor Packard gives also the formula of M. H. Trois for preserving caterpillars, for which it is claimed that the colors of the caterpillars are preserved perfectly, even when exposed to strong light. The formula for this solution is as follows:
Allow the liquid to cool and add 50 grains of carbolic acid, and filter after standing five or six days.
Glycerin.—Glycerin, either pure or mixed with water or alcohol, is frequently used to preserve the larvæ of delicate insects. It preserves the color and form better than alcohol, but particularly in the case of larvæ, it causes a softening of the tissues which renders them unfit for study.
The Wickersheim Preserving Fluid.—This valuable preserving fluid has been known for some time, but is not very commonly used, on account of frequent disappointment due to the difficulty attending its preparation. It is claimed for it that animal or vegetable bodies impregnated with it will retain their form, color, and flexibility in the most perfect manner. The objects to be preserved are put in the fluid for from six to twelve days, according to their size, and then taken out and dried in the air. The ligaments remain soft and movable, and the animals or plants remain fit for anatomical dissection and study for long periods, even years. It is said to be especially valuable for the preservation of larvæ and soft-bodied insects. In order to perfectly preserve the colors, it is necessary to leave the specimens in the fluid, or, if they are taken out, they should be sealed up in air-tight vials or vessels. The formula for the fluid is as follows:
Dissolve 100 grams alum, 25 grams common salt, 12 grams saltpeter, 60grams potash, 10 grams arsenious acid in 3,000 grams boiling water. Filter the solution, and when cold add 10 liters of the liquid to 4 liters of glycerin and 1 liter of methyl alcohol.
Footnote:[7]Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution for 1886, Part II, Report of the National Museum, pp. 182–186. Washington, 1890.
Footnote:[7]Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution for 1886, Part II, Report of the National Museum, pp. 182–186. Washington, 1890.
Footnote:
[7]Annual Report of the Smithsonian Institution for 1886, Part II, Report of the National Museum, pp. 182–186. Washington, 1890.
General Directions.—It matters little how much care and pains have been taken in the preparation and mounting of specimens, they will have little value unless accompanied by proper labels giving information as to locality and date of collection, name of collector, and a label or number referring to notebooks, if any biological or other facts concerning them have been ascertained. There should be pinned to the specimen labels referring to, or giving all the information obtainable or of interest concerning it. A somewhat different style of label will be found necessary in the case of the two forms of collections described in the foregoing pages, namely, the biological or economic collection, and the systematic collection. For the former, numbers may be attached to the specimens which will refer to the notes relating to the specimen or species. For the latter, in most cases, all necessary information may be recorded and made available by written or printed labels attached directly to the specimens. In most cases, however, I find a combination of these two systems convenient and desirable. The numbering system is very simple, and is the one which I have followed in all the species for which I have biological or other notes. It consists in giving each species, as it comes under observation, a serial number which refers to a record in a notebook. With this number may be combined, if convenient, the date of rearing or collection of the specimen, and also the locality and food-plant if known. The vast number of species represented in a systematic collection renders the numbering system entirely out of place and inadequate, and the labeling system alone is generally available. If it becomes necessary in the systematic collection to refer to food-plants or life-history or any other fact of interest, the numbering system should be used, and I recommend that the numbers be written in red ink on the labels, to distinguish at a glance the numbers referring to biological notes from other numbers that will occur in the collection.
Labels for pinned Specimens.—The following labels should be employed in the collection: (1)Locality label, which should be as explicit as possible. (2)Date of capture, which is very useful and sometimes quite important in various ways. It indicates at what time additional specimens of some rare species may be secured, and greatly assists in elaborating the life history of the species, and in other cases assists in the correct determination of closely allied insects, which differ chiefly in habit or date of appearance. (3)A label to indicate the sex. This label has recently acquired greater importance than formerly, on account of the value of the sexual differences in the distinction of species. The well-known signs for male, female, and worker, printed inconvenient form, are well adapted for collections. (4)The name of the collector. This label is of less value, but sometimes becomes important in determining the history of the specimen or the exact place of capture. The name of the species is not necessarily attached to all the specimens in a collection, and ordinarily will be placed with the first specimen in a series in the cabinet. This and other labeling of insects in cabinet is discussed in another place. Other labels are useful to indicate type specimens, namely, those of which descriptions have been drawn up and published, and which should be designated by a special label written by the author himself. Determinations by an authority in a special group should be indicated, and the labels placed on specimens by such an authority should not be removed.
It will not be found necessary to use a separate label for each of the data indicated above, and a single label may be made to combine many of them, as, except for the specific names of the insects themselves (which should always be on the lowermost label), most other words will bear abbreviation, especially localities and dates. “A combination label, which has given general satisfaction to all to whom it has been communicated, is a two-line label printed in diamond type, on heavy writing paper. The upper line consists of the name of the locality,e. g., ‘Washngtn’ (a name consisting of more than eight letters to be abbreviated), and the lower line has at the right-hand corner ‘DC’ (interpunctuation and spacing to be avoided so as to save space). This leaves on the second line sufficient room for inserting the date, which can be quickly and neatly written with ink if the labels are printed in columns of ten or more repetitions. The label thus combines locality with date of capture. Or the upper line reads ‘Arizona’ and the lower line ‘Morrison,’ the label thus combining locality with the name of the collector.”[8]
In general I indorse the system of labeling suggested in the above condensation from Mr. Schwarz, but there is no particular disadvantage, and in fact many advantages, in special cases, in a larger label or in folded labels. Particularly in visiting large foreign collections I have found it convenient to use large labels of thin paper which will contain a good deal of information closely written in pencil and bear folding several times, so as not to occupy more than the ordinary label space when pinned to the specimens. This involves detaching the label when the specimen or species comes to be studied, but this additional labor is insignificant compared with the large amount of valuable information which in time is thus brought together in condensed availability for the student; for brief notes of opinions of experts, of comparison with types, of special studies, of reference to descriptions, etc., may thus be all brought together. Where there is not room to indicate the authority for a determination on the upper side of a label, I also find it convenient to do so on the lower side.
see captionFig.116.—Cabinet for apparatus used in mounting and labeling. (Original).
Fig.116.—Cabinet for apparatus used in mounting and labeling. (Original).
Labeling alcoholic Specimens.—Alcoholic specimens, includingalcoholic biologic material and collections of Arachnida andMyriapoda, are well adapted to the labeling system, as the vials are always of sufficient size to allow the insertion of one or more labels large enough to contain a pretty full record of the specimen. The label may consist of a number referring to notes, or of a number together with the other data indicated for the systematic collection. The label in my experience is preferably written in pencil, which, in alcohol, is practically permanent. Waterproof inks are sometimes used, and of these the oak-gall ink is undoubtedly the best. Dr. George Marx, in labeling his Arachnida, uses onion-skin paper and waterproof ink, such as Higgins's drawing ink. There is some danger, in placing a label in a vial, of its settling against the specimen and injuring it. This, however, can generally be avoided if a little care is used. The label may be long and narrow and folded lengthwise so as to occupy one side only of the vial, or short and inserted in such manner that it will pass around the inside of the vial, where it will be held by the naturaladhesion to the glass in the upper portion of the vial, as shown atFig. 114.
Cabinet for Apparatus.—The work of preparation of insects for the cabinet may be greatly facilitated if a convenient case is provided with drawers and compartments for the keeping of pins of different sizes, labels, braces, implements, tweezers, dissecting apparatus, and the like, with microscopical supplies—slides, cover glasses, mounting media, etc. I present a photograph of a cabinet of this sort used in my earlier work and found very convenient and serviceable (Fig. 116).
Footnote:[8]E. A. Schwarz, Proc. Ent. Soc., Wash., II, No. 1, 1891.
Footnote:[8]E. A. Schwarz, Proc. Ent. Soc., Wash., II, No. 1, 1891.
Footnote:
[8]E. A. Schwarz, Proc. Ent. Soc., Wash., II, No. 1, 1891.
General Directions.—The boxes or cases which are used to keep insects in permanently may be made of any dimensions to suit the fancy, 12 by 16 inches inside being a convenient size and allowing economic use of cork. They must, however, be perfectly tight and should not be more than 2½ inches deep on the inside. The bottoms should be lined with something which will hold the pins, and the whole inside covered with white paper, which, if delicately cross ruled, will facilitate the regular pinning of specimens. While the size and style of the box and cabinet may be left to individual taste, some choice must be had of material.Red cedar should never be used.I have learned, to my sorrow, the baneful effects of this wood, notwithstanding it is recommended—evidently by those who are guiltless of having used it—as having the advantage over other wood of keeping offmuseumpests. It seems impossible to get this wood so seasoned but that a certain amount of resin will continually exude from it; and insects in boxes of this material are very apt to soften and become greasy. Paper boxes are also bad, as they attract moisture and cause the specimens to mold. Well-seasoned pine and whitewood are the most satisfactory; and, in such boxes as have glass covers and are intended to form part of a neat cabinet for parlor ornament, the fronts may be of walnut or cherry.
The character of the boxes and cabinets used for storing insects will depend largely on the nature and extent of the collection and the object of the collector. For temporary use, nothing is more convenient and economical than a cigar box lined with cork or pith. Such boxes, however, should be employed only for the temporary storage of fresh specimens, as they afford free access to museum pests, and insects kept in them for any length of time are apt to be destroyed or rendered useless.
The Folding-box.—The use of folding-boxes for the working collector is to be especially recommended in the case of those orders comprising small insects like Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, etc. These boxes have the great advantage of being readily rearranged on the shelves and of being very easily used in study. The boxes of this type now manufactured by John Schmidt, of Brooklyn, N. Y., and John Burr, of Camden, N. J., based on the experience which I have had, have proved so serviceable and satisfactory in this respect that I have employed them for the bulk ofthe collection in the National Museum. These boxes (Fig. 117) are constructed as follows:
see captionFig.117.—The Schmidt folding insect box, opened and showing arrangement of insects (original).
Fig.117.—The Schmidt folding insect box, opened and showing arrangement of insects (original).
They are of white pine, shellacked and varnished, the bottom and top double and crossgrained, to prevent warping, and projecting slightly at all sides except the hinged back. They are 13 by 8¼ inches outside measurement. The inside measurement is 11¾ by 7. The sides, back, and front are five-sixteenths of an inch thick, with a machine joint, which is neat and very secure. The boxes are 2⅝ inches in outside depth, unequally divided, the lower portion 1½ inches outside depth, lined inside with a thin whitewood strip, projecting three-fourths of an inch above the rim of the outside box. Over this projecting lining the lidcloses as tightly as practicable and is kept from springing by hooks and eyes. The bottom is cork-lined and covered with a fine, white, glazed paper.
Similar folding boxes with both sides of equal depth and both lined with cork, when properly covered, may be made to look like books and be set on end in an ordinary bookcase, but the single lining is preferable, as there is less danger of the breakage of specimens and the boxes may either be laid flat one on the other on shelves, or, what is more convenient, placed side by side resting on the front edge, so that the label is attached to one of the narrow ends. The rows of insects are then pinned crosswise, not lengthwise, of the box, with the abdomens turned toward the front which rests on the shelf.
All the boxes are furnished with neat brass label-holders, in which a card containing a list of the contents can readily be placed and removed at pleasure. The chief demerit of this box which I have endeavored to overcome by the above details is the tendency to warp and crack in the trying steam heat of our Government buildings.
The Cabinet.—For larger insects, such as Lepidoptera, Neuroptera, etc., a larger box is desirable, and for these orders I have adopted for use in the National Museum a cabinet which resulted from a careful study in person of the different forms and patterns used for entomological collections both in this country and Europe, whether by private individuals or public institutions. The drawer and cabinet are essentially after the pattern of those used in the British (South Kensington) Museum, but adapted in size to our own requirements. In the use of the National Museum these cabinets have proved eminently well adapted to their object.
see captionFig.118.—Construction of insect cabinet drawer of the National Museum. A, cross-sectionffront; B, samefside; C, view of front end of side, ⅔ natural size (original).
Fig.118.—Construction of insect cabinet drawer of the National Museum. A, cross-sectionffront; B, samefside; C, view of front end of side, ⅔ natural size (original).
The drawers (Fig. 118, A, B, C) are square, with an outside measurementof 18 inches and an outside depth of 3 inches. The sides and back have a thickness of three-eighths of an inch, while the front is five-eighths of an inch thick. The pieces are firmly dovetailed together, the front being clean and the dovetailing blind. The bottom,a, is of three-ply crossgrained veneer, run into a groove at the sides, leaving a clear inside depth of 21⁄16inches to the frame of the cover. The bottoms are lined in all but forty of the drawers with first quality cork,b, one-fourth of an inch thick. At a distance of one-fourth of an inch from the sides and back and three-eighths of an inch from the front there is an inside box of one-eighth inch whitewood,c, closely fitted, and held in place by blocks between it and the outer box. There is thus between the inner and outer box a clear space,d, all round, in which insecticides or disinfectants can be placed to keep out Museum pests, making it impossible for such to get into the inner box containing the specimens without first passing through this poison chamber. The entire inside is lined with white paper, or, in the case of the uncorked boxes, painted with zinc white. The front is furnished with a plain knob. The cover is of glass, set into a frame,f, three-fourths of an inch wide, three-eighths of an inch thick, with a one-fourth inch tongue fitting closely into the space between the inner lining and outer box, which here serves as a groove. This arrangement furnishes a perfectly tight drawer of convenient size and not unwieldy for handling when studying the collection.
The material of which these drawers are made is California red wood, except the cover frame, which is mahogany. The cabinets containing these drawers are 36 inches high, 40 inches wide, 21 inches deep (all outside measurements), and are closed by two paneled doors. Each cabinet contains twenty drawers in two rows of ten each, and the drawers slide by means of a groove,g, on either side, on hard-wood tongues, and are designed to be interchangeable.
The Lintner display Box.—For beauty and security and the perfect display of the largerLepidoptera, I have seen nothing superior to a box used by Mr. J. A. Lintner, of Albany, N. Y. It is a frame made in the form of a folio volume, with glass set in for sides and bound in an ordinary book cover. The insects are pinned onto pieces of cork fastened to the inside of one of the glass plates and the boxes may be stood on ends, in library shape, like ordinary books. For the benefit of those who wish to make small collections of showy insects, I give Mr. Lintner's method, of which he has been kind enough to furnish me the following description:
Figs. A, B, and C represent, in section, the framework of the volume,ashowing the ends,bthe front, andcthe back. The material can be prepared in long strips of some soft wood by a cabinet-maker (if the collector has the necessary skill and leisure for framing it) at a cost of 60 cents a frame, if a number sufficient for a dozen boxes be ordered. Or, if it be preferred to order them made, the cost should not exceed 80 cents each.Before being placed in the hands of the binder the mitering shouldbe carefully examined and any defect in fitting remedied, so that the glass, when placed in position, may have accurate bearings on all the sides. The interior of the frame is covered with tin foil, made as smooth as possible before application, to be applied with thoroughly boiled flour paste (in which a small proportion of arsenic may be mixed) and rubbed smoothly down till the removal of the blisters, which are apt to appear. The tin foil can be purchased, by weight, at druggists', and the sheets marked off and cut by a rule in strips of proper width, allowing for a trifle of overlapping on the sides. Its cost per volume is merely nominal.First-quality single-thick glass for sides must be selected, wholly free from rust, veins, air-bubbles, or any blemish. Such glass can be purchased at 15 cents a pane. The lower glass, after thorough cleaning, especially of its inner surface, with an alkaline wash, and a final polishing with slightly wetted white printing paper, is to be firmly secured in its place by a proper number of tin points; the upper glass is but temporarily fastened. The binder must be directed to cover the exposed sides of the frame with “combed” paper, bringing it over the border of the permanent lower glass and beneath the removable upper glass.see captionFig.119.—Construction of the Lintner box.The covers of the volume are of heavy binders' board (No. 18), neatly lined within with glazed white paper. On one of the insides of the lids may be attached, by its corners, a sheet with the numbers and names of the species contained in the volume, or these may be placed on the pin bearing the insect. If bound in best quality of imitation morocco, with cloth covers, lettered and gilded on the back, the cost (for a dozen volumes) need not exceed $1 each. If in turkey morocco, it will be $1.50.The lettering and ornamentation of the back will vary with the taste of the individual. The family designations may be permanently lettered, or they may be pasted on the back, on a slip of paper or gum label, as are the generic names, thus permitting the change of the contents of a volume at any time if desired.The bits of cork to which the insects are to be pinned are cut in quarter-inch squares from sheet-cork of one-fourth of an inch in thickness. If the trouble be taken to trim off the corners, giving them an octagonal form, their appearance will be materially improved and much less care will be required in adjusting them on the glass.The cement usually recommended for attaching the cork to the glass is composed of equal parts of white wax and resin. My experience with this has not been favorable, for, after the lapse of a few years, I have invariably been subjected to the serious annoyance of being compelled to renew the entire contents of the volume, clean the glass, and replace the corks with new cement. From some cause,inexplicable to me, a gradual separation takes place of the cork with its cement from the glass, first appearing at the angles of the cork, and its progress indicated by an increasing number of iridescent rings which form within until the center is reached, when, if not previously detached, the insect falls with the cork, usually to its injury and that of others beneath it.A number of years ago I happened to employ, in attaching a single piece of cork in one of my cases, a cement originally made for other purposes, consisting of six parts of resin, one of wax, and one of Venetian red. Several years thereafter my attention was drawn to this piece by finding it as firmly united as when at first applied, and at the present time (after the lapse of twelve years) it is without the slightest indication of separation. Acting upon this hint, I have, of late, used this cement in the restoration of a number of my cases, and with the most satisfactory results. It is important that the cement, when used, should be heated (by a spirit lamp or gas flame) to as high a degree as it will bear without burning. An amount sufficient to cover the bottom of the small, flat metal vessel containing it to the depth of an eighth of an inch will suffice and prevent the cork from taking up more than its requisite quantity. It should be occasionally stirred to prevent the precipitation of its heavier portions. The cork may be conveniently dipped by the aid of a needle inserted in a handle, when, as quickly as possible, it should be transferred to the glass, for the degree of adhesion seems to depend upon the degree of fluidity of the cement. From some experiments made by me, after the corks had been attached as above, in heating the entire glass to such a degree as thoroughly to melt the cement until it spreads outward from beneath the weight of the cork, and then permitted to cool—the glass meanwhile held horizontally, that the corks might not be displaced—the results appear to indicate that the above cement, applied in this manner on glass properly cleaned, will prove a permanent one. It is scarcely necessary to state that this method is not available where the glass has been bound as above.Preparatory to corking the glass for the specimens assigned to it, the spaces required for them are to be ascertained by arranging them in order on a cork surface or otherwise. On a sheet of paper of the size of the glass, perpendicular lines, of the number of the rows and at their proper distances, are to be drawn, and cross lines equal in number to the insects contained in the rows. The distances of these lines will be uniform, unless smaller specimens are to occupy some portion of the case, when they may be graduated to the required proportion. With the sheet ruled in this manner and placed beneath the glass, the points where the corks are to be applied are indicated by the intersections of the lines. The sheet, marked with the family of the insects for which it was used and with the numbers designating its divisions, may be laid aside for future use in the preparation of other cases for which it may be suitable. In a series of unbound cases in my collection, in which the glasses measure 11 by 14½ inches, I have used for my Lepidoptera and laid aside the following scales, the citation of which will also serve to show the capacity of the cases: 3 by 8, Catocalas; 2 by 7 and 3 by 9, Sphingidæ; 4 by 11 to 4 by 14, Bombycidæ; 5 by 13 to 6 by 16, Noctuidæ; 8 by 16 and 8 by 20, Lycænidæ and Tortricidæ.The unbound cases above referred to are inexpensive frames, made by myself, of quarter-inch white wood or pine, the corners mitered, glued, and nailed with three-quarter inch brads, lined within with white paper (better with tin foil), and covered without with stout manila paper. The glasses are cut of the size of the frame, and when placed in position thereon are appressed closely to it by laying upon them, near each corner, a heavy weight, and strips of an enameled green paper, cut to the width of 1 inch, are pasted over their edges, extending a little beyond the thickness of the frame, and brought downward over the outside of the frame. On its back two gum labels, indicating the insects inclosed, are placed at uniform heights (7 and 12 inches), when, if all has been neatly done, they present a tasteful appearance upon a shelf. When there is reason to believe that the case will need to be opened for the change or addition of specimens, it will be found convenient toemploy, for the fastening of the left-hand side of the upper glass, paper lined with a thin muslin, to serve as a hinge when the other sides have been cut.Should it become desirable to bind these cases, outside frames may be constructed after the plans above given, with the omission of the inside quarter inch (the equivalent of these frames), in which these may be placed and held in position by two or three screws inserted in their sides.
Figs. A, B, and C represent, in section, the framework of the volume,ashowing the ends,bthe front, andcthe back. The material can be prepared in long strips of some soft wood by a cabinet-maker (if the collector has the necessary skill and leisure for framing it) at a cost of 60 cents a frame, if a number sufficient for a dozen boxes be ordered. Or, if it be preferred to order them made, the cost should not exceed 80 cents each.
Before being placed in the hands of the binder the mitering shouldbe carefully examined and any defect in fitting remedied, so that the glass, when placed in position, may have accurate bearings on all the sides. The interior of the frame is covered with tin foil, made as smooth as possible before application, to be applied with thoroughly boiled flour paste (in which a small proportion of arsenic may be mixed) and rubbed smoothly down till the removal of the blisters, which are apt to appear. The tin foil can be purchased, by weight, at druggists', and the sheets marked off and cut by a rule in strips of proper width, allowing for a trifle of overlapping on the sides. Its cost per volume is merely nominal.
First-quality single-thick glass for sides must be selected, wholly free from rust, veins, air-bubbles, or any blemish. Such glass can be purchased at 15 cents a pane. The lower glass, after thorough cleaning, especially of its inner surface, with an alkaline wash, and a final polishing with slightly wetted white printing paper, is to be firmly secured in its place by a proper number of tin points; the upper glass is but temporarily fastened. The binder must be directed to cover the exposed sides of the frame with “combed” paper, bringing it over the border of the permanent lower glass and beneath the removable upper glass.
see captionFig.119.—Construction of the Lintner box.
Fig.119.—Construction of the Lintner box.
The covers of the volume are of heavy binders' board (No. 18), neatly lined within with glazed white paper. On one of the insides of the lids may be attached, by its corners, a sheet with the numbers and names of the species contained in the volume, or these may be placed on the pin bearing the insect. If bound in best quality of imitation morocco, with cloth covers, lettered and gilded on the back, the cost (for a dozen volumes) need not exceed $1 each. If in turkey morocco, it will be $1.50.
The lettering and ornamentation of the back will vary with the taste of the individual. The family designations may be permanently lettered, or they may be pasted on the back, on a slip of paper or gum label, as are the generic names, thus permitting the change of the contents of a volume at any time if desired.
The bits of cork to which the insects are to be pinned are cut in quarter-inch squares from sheet-cork of one-fourth of an inch in thickness. If the trouble be taken to trim off the corners, giving them an octagonal form, their appearance will be materially improved and much less care will be required in adjusting them on the glass.
The cement usually recommended for attaching the cork to the glass is composed of equal parts of white wax and resin. My experience with this has not been favorable, for, after the lapse of a few years, I have invariably been subjected to the serious annoyance of being compelled to renew the entire contents of the volume, clean the glass, and replace the corks with new cement. From some cause,inexplicable to me, a gradual separation takes place of the cork with its cement from the glass, first appearing at the angles of the cork, and its progress indicated by an increasing number of iridescent rings which form within until the center is reached, when, if not previously detached, the insect falls with the cork, usually to its injury and that of others beneath it.
A number of years ago I happened to employ, in attaching a single piece of cork in one of my cases, a cement originally made for other purposes, consisting of six parts of resin, one of wax, and one of Venetian red. Several years thereafter my attention was drawn to this piece by finding it as firmly united as when at first applied, and at the present time (after the lapse of twelve years) it is without the slightest indication of separation. Acting upon this hint, I have, of late, used this cement in the restoration of a number of my cases, and with the most satisfactory results. It is important that the cement, when used, should be heated (by a spirit lamp or gas flame) to as high a degree as it will bear without burning. An amount sufficient to cover the bottom of the small, flat metal vessel containing it to the depth of an eighth of an inch will suffice and prevent the cork from taking up more than its requisite quantity. It should be occasionally stirred to prevent the precipitation of its heavier portions. The cork may be conveniently dipped by the aid of a needle inserted in a handle, when, as quickly as possible, it should be transferred to the glass, for the degree of adhesion seems to depend upon the degree of fluidity of the cement. From some experiments made by me, after the corks had been attached as above, in heating the entire glass to such a degree as thoroughly to melt the cement until it spreads outward from beneath the weight of the cork, and then permitted to cool—the glass meanwhile held horizontally, that the corks might not be displaced—the results appear to indicate that the above cement, applied in this manner on glass properly cleaned, will prove a permanent one. It is scarcely necessary to state that this method is not available where the glass has been bound as above.
Preparatory to corking the glass for the specimens assigned to it, the spaces required for them are to be ascertained by arranging them in order on a cork surface or otherwise. On a sheet of paper of the size of the glass, perpendicular lines, of the number of the rows and at their proper distances, are to be drawn, and cross lines equal in number to the insects contained in the rows. The distances of these lines will be uniform, unless smaller specimens are to occupy some portion of the case, when they may be graduated to the required proportion. With the sheet ruled in this manner and placed beneath the glass, the points where the corks are to be applied are indicated by the intersections of the lines. The sheet, marked with the family of the insects for which it was used and with the numbers designating its divisions, may be laid aside for future use in the preparation of other cases for which it may be suitable. In a series of unbound cases in my collection, in which the glasses measure 11 by 14½ inches, I have used for my Lepidoptera and laid aside the following scales, the citation of which will also serve to show the capacity of the cases: 3 by 8, Catocalas; 2 by 7 and 3 by 9, Sphingidæ; 4 by 11 to 4 by 14, Bombycidæ; 5 by 13 to 6 by 16, Noctuidæ; 8 by 16 and 8 by 20, Lycænidæ and Tortricidæ.
The unbound cases above referred to are inexpensive frames, made by myself, of quarter-inch white wood or pine, the corners mitered, glued, and nailed with three-quarter inch brads, lined within with white paper (better with tin foil), and covered without with stout manila paper. The glasses are cut of the size of the frame, and when placed in position thereon are appressed closely to it by laying upon them, near each corner, a heavy weight, and strips of an enameled green paper, cut to the width of 1 inch, are pasted over their edges, extending a little beyond the thickness of the frame, and brought downward over the outside of the frame. On its back two gum labels, indicating the insects inclosed, are placed at uniform heights (7 and 12 inches), when, if all has been neatly done, they present a tasteful appearance upon a shelf. When there is reason to believe that the case will need to be opened for the change or addition of specimens, it will be found convenient toemploy, for the fastening of the left-hand side of the upper glass, paper lined with a thin muslin, to serve as a hinge when the other sides have been cut.
Should it become desirable to bind these cases, outside frames may be constructed after the plans above given, with the omission of the inside quarter inch (the equivalent of these frames), in which these may be placed and held in position by two or three screws inserted in their sides.
The Martindale Box for Lepidoptera.—Mr. Isaac C. Martindale, in the October, 1891, number ofEntomological News, pp. 126, 127, describes a new form of cabinet for butterflies, the drawers of which present some new features. They are for the same end as the Lintner box described above—namely, for the display of the upper and under surface of the wings of Lepidoptera, and promise to be more useful. The drawer is described as follows:
The especial feature is the drawer itself, which, instead of having a cork bottom, as is usually the case, has both the top and bottom of glass. The top part of the drawer frame fits tightly over a ledge one inch in height, effectually preventing the intrusion of destructive insects, the pest of the entomologist; but it is readily lifted when it is desirable to add to the contents or change the location of the specimens. For the inside arrangement I have taken a strip of common tin, one inch wide, and turned up each side five-sixteenths of an inch, thus leaving three-eighths of an inch for the bottom. The length of the strip of tin, being about two inches longer than the width of the drawer, admits of each end being turned up one inch. Into this tin trough is tightly fitted a cork strip three-eighths of an inch square. The whole being covered with white paper, such as is usually used for lining drawers, conceals the inequalities of the cork and makes a fine finish. They should be made to fit neatly in the drawer, and can be readily moved about to suit large or small specimens. ForLycænas,Pamphilas, etc., as many as fifteen of these strips may be used in one drawer, and as few as five forMorphos,Caligos, etc. The upturned ends are fastened in place by using the ordinary thumb tacks that can be procured at any stationer's. The frame work of the drawers should be of white pine, well seasoned. Into this the thumb tacks are readily inserted and as easily withdrawn when a change in the position of the cork strips is needed.
The especial feature is the drawer itself, which, instead of having a cork bottom, as is usually the case, has both the top and bottom of glass. The top part of the drawer frame fits tightly over a ledge one inch in height, effectually preventing the intrusion of destructive insects, the pest of the entomologist; but it is readily lifted when it is desirable to add to the contents or change the location of the specimens. For the inside arrangement I have taken a strip of common tin, one inch wide, and turned up each side five-sixteenths of an inch, thus leaving three-eighths of an inch for the bottom. The length of the strip of tin, being about two inches longer than the width of the drawer, admits of each end being turned up one inch. Into this tin trough is tightly fitted a cork strip three-eighths of an inch square. The whole being covered with white paper, such as is usually used for lining drawers, conceals the inequalities of the cork and makes a fine finish. They should be made to fit neatly in the drawer, and can be readily moved about to suit large or small specimens. ForLycænas,Pamphilas, etc., as many as fifteen of these strips may be used in one drawer, and as few as five forMorphos,Caligos, etc. The upturned ends are fastened in place by using the ordinary thumb tacks that can be procured at any stationer's. The frame work of the drawers should be of white pine, well seasoned. Into this the thumb tacks are readily inserted and as easily withdrawn when a change in the position of the cork strips is needed.
Horizontal vs. vertical Arrangement of Boxes.—I have elsewhere discussed the availability of the upright vs. the horizontal arrangement of insect boxes.[9]In the case of Lepidoptera and large-bodied insects I have found the horizontal drawer or box to be preferable. If large-bodied insects are placed in a vertical position they are very liable to become loose on the pins, swing from side to side, and damage themselves and other specimens; but for the smaller insects of all orders, the vertical arrangement is quite safe and satisfactory. If the pin is slightly flattened, as described on p. 69, the danger of large specimens becoming loose is to a great extent avoided.
Lining for Insect Boxes.—The old lining of insect boxes was the ordinary sheet cork of commerce, and if a good quality of cork is procurable it will answer the purpose. A better substance, however, for the lining of insect boxes is the prepared or ground cork, which is now almost exclusively used. It is simply ground cork mixed with a smallamount of glue, compressed into sheets and covered with paper. This gives a very homogenous composition, and is much better than the ordinary cork, having a more uniform and neat appearance, and admitting the insertion of the pins more freely. It may be purchased from H. Herpers, 18 Crawford street, Newark, N. J.