The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-09


been braved in order TO captllre rare speci-
mems IN odd corners of the earth. To
make collection OF value to science the
putterfiies from all regions of the earth
must be representatives. from the
Jungles OF india. from the cannlbal Islands
or the south Pacific, and from the cold
plateaus OF our great northern regions
where only few living forms can exist.
one man could hardly capture specimens
OF all the butterflies in existence. even
though he spent iife.ime at the work and
lived to be twice threescore and ten. A
large collection consequently means the
work OF Dozens or even scores of men scat
tered throughout the world. but brought
together and arranged by one or two
enthusiastic ent)mougists of rare skill and
knowledge in Identifying and classifying
the creatures
The high price paid for rare specimens
OF butterflies has had the effect of an
ducing dishonest collectors to impose upon
the innocent Recently the entomologist
of the London natural history museum re-
ceived an apparently new and beautiful
butterfly from India. but upon a micro
scopical examination It proved to be an
ordinary variety, artfuly and skillfuny
dyed. This was the first time that this
trick had been performed. but it Is get
ting to be quite an old story at the muse
UNI to receive consignments of butterflies
of composite nature; that IT, the wings
of several different species would be re-
moved and composite butterflies Of unique
appearance would then be manufactured
from them.
There are a number Of wealthy ento-
mologists In England who own private
collections of butterflies valued all the way
from 100000 to $4,000. The most costly
and probably the most perfect, collection
in the world. private or public. is owned
hNF Wa1tAr TQ.,4h III
private museum of Tring In Hertford-
shfte. The collection has probably cost its
owner several hundred thousand dollars
the exact sum can only be guessed at. 1t
Is the accession of these wealthy collectors
TO the ranks of the professional entomolo-
gists that makes II possible for butterfly
hunters to secure the high prices that rare
specimens command to-day. There is no
regular table or set list of prices, but it
may be said i'm general way that they
vary from a few cents apiece for common
insects up to one hundred or more dollars
for very rare creatures. The African
Papilio antimachus a very rare butterfly,
Is quoted high in the London market, and
a beautiful pair sold for $3.50 at auction.
New Guinea butterflies were exceedingly
high priced a few years ago, and some of
them brought as much as $3.50 apiece; but
to-day they are more plentiful, and sell at
about half this price. Papllio caunus, one
of the mimic butterflies. will generally
bring $50 in the market to-day. When the
hunters first began to penetrate into the
wilds of the uneXplored regions of the
earth for butterflies, exorbtant prices
were offered for the few rare specimens
brought back. The wealthy collectors
| then paid prices that were out of all pro-
portions to the real value of the insects,
report having IL that an American collec-
tor offered $1,000 for single rare specl-
men, and one of the Rothschilds paid half
| this sum for Papilio that Is quite com
mon to-day.
In the Denton collection, recently placed
on view in New York a the American art
| galleries, there were 800 varieties repre-
| sented and their value has been varlously
! estimated at $4,000 to $4,000. Most OF
the specimens were caught and mounted
! by the two owners of the collection Will
! lam and Skelly w. Denton; but others
were gathered by private hunters In differ
ent parts of the earth, or purchased out
right in the London market. There are
several London firms engaged in butter
ny collecting, and most of the rare speci
mems find their way, sooner or later, tC
them They have travelling entomologisti
in every part of the earth who collect TO-
them such specimens as they need. Thes'
authorized agents for the firms are sup
plinented by free lances and general col
lectors of everything queer and unique
that can be found in the out-of-the-wal
corners of the earth. They unite butter
fly collecting to orchid and lizard-huntlnl
in such a way that they are pretty sul'
of good rewards. They go forth into tn
great tropical woods and swamps arme'
with three sets of hunting implements; on
Is for gathering orchids, another for shoot
ing wild beasts and human enemies, AM
a third for corrallng and preserving put
terflies.
The latter work Is not the least interest
ing of the three and one that Is probabl
known the least about. The hunters carr
with them all the modern outfits necessar
m preserve the butterflies in a perfec
state: but in many cases they ran TO secur
their booty entire. So delicate are man
of the flmy wings and legs that 1t Is rar
to find more than 10 per cent OF the hunt
ers collection I'm a perfect condition whe
he finally reaches civilization. There ar
rare butterflies of tropical AFRICA an
America which are found in several larg
collections; but not single specimen ma
ever yet been perfectly mounted.
The butterflies are collected in two ways
they are either caught in net or IN IN
larvaI or chrysalid form. Those capture
I'm the latter condition can be develope
into perfect specimens in captivity; pu
hunters in the wild swamps and jungle
do not have the facilities for transportln
tbe larvae to civilization, and they rarel
attempt to bring back specimens IN I'M
condition. They depend entirely upon IN
net for capturing them. The net Is mount
cd on a iointed pole, so that the entomolc
glst can make a sweep 10 feet or more I
IN the air When the insects are caugh
thew are dropper into bottle of cyanide
which quickly and painlessIy kills theH-
The common butterfieS which we Sc
fitting about in our gardens ana helds ma
he easy enough to capture, but in the troi
les the rare specimens frequently mute
among the treetops where the beautltt
orchids and trailing vines bloom. In orde
10 capture them 1t Is consequently neces
! ssrv to climb the trees and take up pre-
carlous and uncertain position among IN
branches. 80 or 100 feet high. Then whe
the butterflies hover near the tree ski
ful sweep of the net may imprison one c
two. There are some odd varieties whic
refuse to be captured even In this dif1cu
manner. and decoys have to be set fe
them. Curiosity seems to be born In pu
terfies as well as In human beings, an
some varieties have a great predilectio
for rich and unusual colors. Thus a re-
bIue or white piece Of cloth tied among Il
frees will sometimes attract the wild II
sects. and they will exhibit curiosity 70 az
nroach close enough to the object
satisfy the hunter. Mounted specimen
~. -.