MA^N DIATOMS OF THE ALBATKOSS VOYAGES. 355 



cida swilhii (0. Ag.) Van IIeui\j and rcferw to his formrr liguros.« UTid()ul)tt'(Ily the 

 ligurc's given by Van llnin^k are a Navicuhi. and iiiidouhtt dly all f^uch forms should 

 be changed from Schizonema to Navicula. Were this, therefore, a jutitifialde identifi- 

 cation, iV. smithii Brel). would have to give way to iV. smilhii (C. Ag.) Van ileur., ay 

 Sdiizonema smithii C. Ag. was published in 1824.^ There are two early representa- 

 tions of S. smithii 0. Ag>' In the earlirr there is no mention of the markings of the 

 valvOj the description being concerned with tlie shape of the gelatinous threads 

 inclosing the frustules, as is common in Kiitzing. The figures are too small to give 

 any clear idea of the valve. Enougli, however, is evident to show that Kiitzing's 

 idea of this species of Agardh is irr(^concilable with that of William Smith. Smith's 

 figure is clear and the description accurate, yet the author quotes Kutzing's entirely 

 discordant figure. Van Ileurck's figures are different from both the luiegoing, and 

 he says^ of this form, "nee Kutz.^ Smith, &c., '' and on figure 4 of the same plate he 

 refers l^oth the figure in Kiitzing and that in Smith to S, ramosissi^nvni C, Ag. De 

 Toni^ recognizes Van Heurck's idea (»f 8. smithii C. Ag. to be correct, while Cleve/ 

 makes it a synonym of Navicula avenacea ]?reb. I think there can be no duul>t tliat 

 the S, smithii C. Ag. of Smith's Synopsis'^ is the same as 8. rainosissi^iium- C. Ag. as 

 that form is interpreted by Van Ileurck, Cleve, and others. I could extend indefi- 

 ' nitely the recital of this muddle over 5. smilhii C. Ag. were it worth while. Enough 

 has been said to illustrate the fact I now wish to mention, namely, that in dealing with 

 members of the (»ld genus Schizonema we arc as a rule confronted with indefinable 

 names, impossil)le to include in our synonymy, if we wish to l>e at all accurate as to 

 facts. This arises from the custom in the earlier books of laying stress on the gelat- 

 inous envelope to the jnu'tial or comjdcto neglect of the diatoms inclosed, so that the 

 species and in many cases the genus of the original form is absolutily ol)scurcd. 

 Here and there we fiud a case where a name, originally indefinable, becomes in sul)se- 

 quent works repeated and more clearly imaged, and grows to be widely a<'coj)ted as 

 standing for a diatom of well-maikod and generally understood charactiTistics. In 

 su(^h cases it is perlnq>s well to refer to tlu^ original citation and incbulo it in 1h(^ synon- 

 ymy. But *S. smithii C Ag. is an example o*f a host of forms with no such history. 

 Nobody knows what Agardh meant by his name. There is no agreement among the 

 various authors as to its structure. We can not even know that it A\'a.s a Navicula. 

 To take whart, practically speaking, is a nomen nudum, and transfer it to Navicula 

 on the l)a8is of mere guesswork, thereljy invalidating a long-established and thoroughly 

 understood name, is manifestly not justifial)le, for it destroys a valid name for an inde- 

 finable one. 



Found at stations 2920H, 3C9G, 3712H, Hawaiian Islands, Honshu Island, and 

 Okhotsk Sea. 



Navicula Solaris Greg. Trans. Micr. Soc. Lond. n. s. 4: 43. pi, 5.f, 10. 185G. Moeb» 

 Diat.-taf. pi, UKf, 10, 1890. Schmidt, Atlas pi. 4(1. J- KL 187G. Rabh. FI. Eur. 

 Alg. 1: 181. 18(14. O'Meaau, Proc. Roy. Irish Acad. 11. 2: 410, pi. 34 J. 13, 1875 

 (poor figm-e). Pritch. Hist. Infus. ed. 4. 904. 18GL Cleve, Sv. Vet. Akad. 

 Ilandl. 27^: 32. 1895. De Toni, Syll. Alg. 2: 53. 1891. 



Schmidt's doul>t of his figure, quoted above, being S. solans was shown to be unnec- 

 essary by a comjdete fru.-.tule I ft>und in the (hedging at station 3G07, in which i>ne 



a 



Y-dn Ileur. Syn.)p. pL 15, f. S3. 1881; Treat. Dial, pi. J./. 241- ISOG. 



^G. Ag. Syst. Alg. 10. 1824. 



c Klirtz. iJacin. 114. pL 27. f, 5. 1844. W. Smith, Synoj). Brit. Diat. 2; 75. ph 57 

 /. 362. 1S5G. 



^ Van Hour. Synop. pi. 15 J. 33. 1881. 

 ^SyH. Alg. 2: 293, 1891. 

 /Sv. Vet. Akad. Handl. 27"^: 15. 1S!)5. 

 g\\\ Smith, S>'nop. Biit. Diat. 2: 75. JS5G, 



