to come off, legs and all. Push about a quarter of an inch of the pin through the base of the point, enough to hold the pin firm in the block when the point stands level with the spot of attachment. Holding the pin in the left hand, put a very small quantity of glue on the underside of the tip of the point. With this tip directly above the spot of attachment, push the pin into the block beside the insect until the point touches it, as shown in the picture. Be sure that the specimen thorax, the specimen will stand at right angles to the point with less trouble if the tip of the point is clipped off or bent under a little at the back. This also appears in the picture. "E" is a Membracid or Tree-hopper. Members of this family are compressed laterally, and have im- portant characters on the ventral surface. It is there- fore convenient to mount them as shown. When inverted the specimen will lie horizontally on top of the point with the feet stretched out to the left. It is equally acceptable, but more troublesome, to mount Membracids in the same way as illustrated for the fly, "F," the method used for most laterally compressed species. The specimen is shown lying on its left side. The point, with the tip bent down, is already in its final position near the top of the pin. The tip, which has a little glue on the outer surface, will be pressed against the right side of the insect just under the wing. The disadvantage of this method is that the pin must be held in the fingers until the glue has set sufficiently to keep the specimen in place. It is, however, the only practical method for insects which will neither lie on their backs nor stand on their feet. "F," when mounted, will be in a vertical position, wings up, feet down. Fig. 11. Methods of applying points to insects of various shapes. is level, with its long axis at right angles to the length of the point, and that neither the tip of the point nor the drop of adhesive extends beyond the midline of the insect. Leave pin and specimen in this position until the glue has set. Then withdraw the pin from the point, and insert it from the other side. The point should stand half an inch below the head of the pin at the end of this operation. If a specimen is cylindrical, and offers no flat surface on the bottom for the attachment of the point, it may be treated like the weevil "B." The tip of the point is bent upwards and applied to the side of the creature between the bases of the legs. If, in mounting speci- mens upside down, you find the left-handed procedure inconvenient, turn the creature around with the head toward you. Its right and yours will then correspond. A specimen so constructed that it cannot lie on its back but can stand on its feet may be handled, like the globular beetle "C," by bending the tip of the point downward and applying it to the right side of the creature above the bases of the legs. If it will make the point fit better, the bending may be done diagonally as shown. Ants like "D" require a very broad point attached to both thorax and abdomen, bridging the weak place at the waist. Since the abdomen is broader than the When mounting insects on points, remember the label, pinned near the middle of the right hand edge and read from behind. Completed point-mounted specimens should look like those shown at the bottom of fig. 10. STORAGE As soon as an insect is mounted, pin it into a storage box to keep it safe from dust and damage. If you are making a large general collection, you may want to sort your specimens as you go and use a separate box for each group. When the boxes are full, or the day's work finished, leave the open boxes in a warm, dry, mouse-proof place for several days so that the speci- mens may dry rapidly. Slow drying causes discolora- tion of some specimens. A few very heavy-bodied creatures, notably large grasshoppers, are so difficult in this respect that they may have to be eviscerated through a ventral incision while fresh, and stuffed with cotton, if the color is to be preserved. When the specimens are dry, put into each box, before storing it away, a teaspoonful of paradichloro- benzene, as a precaution against mould and the attack of Dermestids and other entomophagous beetles. If the boxes are to be filed on edge, tie up the crystals in a piece of loose-woven cloth and pin it into a corner of the box. This will prevent the crystals from breaking the specimens as they shift position every time the box is moved.