convince such of the uninitiate as he cannot avoid that the mania is at least an interesting one, more worthy of curiosity than of ridicule. It is impossible to traverse any public place with an insect net without becoming the butt of jests and the victim of innumerable questions, mostly silly. A little courtesy, when it comes hardest, will go far toward mitigating not only your own suffering at the tongues of the philistines, but also those of other collectors who may come after you. Indeed, with sufficient patience, you may even make a convert or two, especially among the young. Children, if they spot you in the field, are certain to follow you everywhere with leech-like persistence and a flood of conversation. This need not be wholly disastrous, for if you cannot shake them you can put them to work. Explain what you are doing and ask them, quite seriously, to help. The casually curious will soon weary of turning over stones, or chasing grasshoppers, and will depart peacefully of their own accord. The few who stick it out will be sincerely interested, and so worth teaching. When collecting in strange territory which is not an absolute wilderness, it is only polite to ask the owner's permission and, having received it, to treat his property considerately. If you pull up his vegetables, mow down his flowers, strip his trees, overthrow his woodpile, and, in general, leave a swath of devastation behind you, not only you but all other collectors will be anathema to him forever after. There is another reason for disturbing things as little as possible, and that is to keep the insects content to remain in the vicinity. It is an article of faith among the instructed always to replace a stone or board which has been overturned, as it may take months for conditions under a newly moved stone to become acceptable to insects. Needless, to say, it is unethical to abstract specimens from another collector's trap, should you happen to find one. You might, however, leave a note in it, and so make the owner's acquaintance, to mutual benefit. For the sake of others who may be working the same district, and out of personal liking for insects and spiders as animals, the considerate collector will not kill any harmless creature except for scientific purposes. The number of specimens of each kind which should be taken will depend upon the collector's interests and facilities. If your interests are general and your storage space limited, you may confine your catch to two pairs of adults of each species. If you are fascinated by the strange life cycles of insects, you will want to keep immature specimens of all ages. If you are making a distribution study, or working out a pattern of seasonal variation, you may want hundreds of specimens of the same species from different localities and of many dates. In any case, take all you really want, but let the others go. Like any other natural resource, the insect population, especially of large and conspicuous species and in well collected areas, is likely to suffer from abuse.