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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

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21 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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the Colonies approached have accepted the scheme, and have agreed to grant the necessary subventions for a period of three years. The Indian Government alone has declined to contribute.

Lord Cromer

As the Committee will now constitute a central entomological organisation for practically the whole Empire, it seemed desirable that it should adopt a title which would give a better indication of its actual scope and functions. therefore asked the Secretary of State for the Colonies if he would be good enough to obtain the King's permission to use the title of " The Imperial Bureau of Entomo- logy," and to this His Majesty was graciously pleased to grant his assent.

It will be recalled that at the last meeting a question was raised as to the desirability or otherwise of keeping the work of the newly established Bureau distinct from that of the original Research Committee. The members then present, without arriving at a final decision, appeared to favour the view that there should be but a single organisation. The matter has been referred to by Dr. Gordon Hewitt in a recent letter. He states that his idea was that the Committee had to deal with certain matters quite outside the scope of the Bureau, and that in the discussion which took place at the Conference in August last the two bodies were treated as quite distinct. He suggests that the merging of one into the other would affect the financial arrangements, and that any such proposal should be communicated to the Governments contributing to the Bureau. It seems desirable, therefore, that the question should be settled as soon as possible to prevent any chance of misunder- standings.

In accordance with the suggestion that the contributing self-governing Dominions should he represented on the Managing Committee of the Bureau, the Canadian Government have asked Dr. A. E. Shipley to act on their behalf, and I have myself been asked to represent the Union of South Africa.

On the 29th November last a meeting of the Publication Sub-Committee was held, at which definite arrangements were made for proceeding with the publication of the new monthly journal. This journal is to be called “ The Review of Applied Entomology"; the size will be royal octavo, and the paper and type will be identical with that of the Tropical Diseases Bulletin. Each number will consist of two parts: Series A, Agricultural; and Series B. Medical and Veterinary. It is estimated that the two series together will run to about sixty pages monthly. It is proposed to print 2,000 copies of each part, with an extra 500 copies of the first two numbers, to be distributed for the purpose of securing subscriptions and exchanges. The sale prices arranged are as follows:

Annual subscription, 12s. post free; agricultural part only, 8s.; medical

part only, 5s.; separate copies, 9d, and 6d., respectively.

As soon as a definite start was made with the work of preparing the Review, it became evident that the accommodation available in the Natural History Museum was quite inadequate for our purposes. The Finance Sub-Committee, therefore, authorised the taking of a lease of the first floor in 27, Elvaston Place, Queen's Gate, at a rental of £100 a year. The lease could not be obtained for a shorter period than three years, but can be terminated at the end of the first year by a payment of £15, or at the end of the second for £10. There is a resident caretaker, with whom arrangements have been made for the necessary cleaning of the premises and supply- ing fires; it is estimated that this, together with the cost of lighting, will come to between £60 and £70 a year.

Nearly all the necessary furniture (except the linoleum and electric light fittings) was obtained through the Office of Works at a cost of £46 10s., but this does not include the bookshelves, which have not yet been ordered. The cost of fitting the whole of the large double room with glass bookshelves would not be less than £100 to £120, but the Finance Sub Committee have now considered the matter, and have decided that it will be sufficient for one side of the room only to be fitted with shelves, the cost of which will be about £60.

Mr. North took possession of the rooms on the 3rd of January, his previous acquaintance with the personnel and methods of the Stores Department of the Office of Works having greatly facilitated matters.

To assist him a typist has been engaged at 25s, a week, and an office boy at 12s.

a week; but it is clear that he will need an assistant who will be capable of doing

some of the abstracting work, as was provided for in the original estimate.

The first number of the Review is now in the press, and it is anticipated that

it will be issued on the 31st January It is not quite so full a part as we had hoped

to produce, but the work has had to be carried on under considerable difficulties.

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Great credit is due to Mr. North for the way in which he has carried through an unaccustomed task, in spite of incessant interruptions in connection with settling into the new offices.

Another serious matter was the difficulty in obtaining the most recently issued parts of the periodicals to be reviewed; for in the libraries consulted most of these were, from varions causes, considerably in arrear. If the Review is to be kept thoroughly up to date- and this is really essential to its success- the more periodicals we can exchange or take in for our own library the better, as we can then insist on prompt delivery.

Arrangements have been made with Messrs. Dulau and Company to distribute the Review for us. On account of the very large number of free and exchange copies which we shall have to send out they are charging a commission of 20 per cent, as against 15 per cent for the Bulletin. But this seems quite reasonable, and has been approved by the Finance Sub-Committee.

Dr. Gordon Hewitt has expressed a strong opinion that a certain number of free copies of the Review should be issued to the contributing Colonies, who, however, must distribute them only to Government officials and institutions. Canada's requirements at 40.

He estimates

As it is not feasible to obtain similar estimates at once from the other Colonies. I would propose that they should receive one copy for every £10 per annum subscribed.

Permission having "been obtained from the Finance Sub-Committee, two additional assistants for purely entomological work were engaged during the present month: Mr. Robert Veitch, from Edinburgh University, and Mr. Gilbert Storey, from Cambridge University. The selection has been a very fortunate one, as they both appear to be very promising young men, and take a keen interest in their work. These assistants have been engaged for one year only, at a salary of £150. They have both been given permission to attend Professor Lefroy's lectures for one hour twice a week. Unfortunately Mr. Storey has asked for leave to apply for the vacant post of Entomologist in Madras--a request, which cannot reasonably be refused.

At our last inceting a long discussion took place with regard to a proposal of the Trinidad Estate Proprietors to send out to that island, for the purpose of investi- gating the frog-hopper pest, a certain gentleman whose appointment the Committee Found it impossible to recommend.

The members of the Committee selected for the purpose discussed the matter on the following day with the representatives of the Trinidad Proprietors, Sir George Le. Hunte, the Governor of Trinidad, being also present. Fortunately it had been ascertained in the meantime that it might be possible to secure the services of Mr. J. C. Kershaw, who has worked for some years under Dr. R. C. L. Perkins in Hawaii, and who has had valuable experience in the control of sugar cane pests by parasites. After a somewhat lengthy and animated discussion the Trinidad Proprietors agreed to offer the post to Mr Kershaw, and expressed their gratitude to the Committee for the advice and assistance which had been accorded them. Mr. Kershaw accepted the post and landed in Trinidad in December.

In view of the considerable amount of additional work that has had to he coped with during the past quarter, it has been rather fortunate that a number of our most active contributors from Africa happen to have been at home on leave. Thus, although the number of persons who have sent in collections is practically the same as for the previous quarter, namely, 37, the number of specimens received is just one-half, that is to say, 11.000, of which 3,000 were blood-sucking flies.

The usual statements showing receipts and expenditure for the quarter and the general financial position have been circulated, and indicate that there will still be a reserve balance of about £550 at the end of the financial year, even though the actual and estimated expenditure on account of the Bureau, as distinguished from the Committee, will have been about £270 in excess of the receipts, the only sums which have as yet been received on this account being £300 from the individual Australian Colonies and £25 from Barbados,

The large amount, standing to the credit of the Carnegie Fund is partly due to the fact that the £1,000 for 1913 was received last November, while no payments have vet been claimed in respect of the grants offered to the Colonies of Trinidad and British Guiana: further, there are certain sums due to Messrs. Rutherford and Strickland which have been paid during this month.

A short time ago Lord Cromer was good enough to approach Mr. Carnegie, on behalf of the Committee, with reference to the possible continuation of his special donations, which would otherwise have ceased at the end of this year. As a result

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