MAMMALIA. 3 



put an end to the crying evils which have arisen from the extremely 

 deranged state of the Nomenclature of Zoology in England and France. This 

 disorder is to be attributed to the disinclination of very many, particularly 

 among the lovers and promoters of Ornithology, to submit to any rule, and 

 also from their want, in general, of a sufficient knowledge of the ancient 

 languages, which has caused them so barbarously to maltreat Greek and 

 Latin in the composition of new generic names, that these names cannot be 

 employed by others without their equally incurring the guilt of barbarism. 

 As for the rest, the rules given by the Association are not new, the 

 chief of them having been (though that is not particularly shown) in- 

 stil uted more than thirty years ago by Illiger, who transferred them 

 to zoology from the precepts of Linnaeus' ' Philosophia Botanica,' and 

 employed by him as far back as the year IS 11, in his 'Prodromus 

 systematis Mammalium et Avium, additis terminis zoographicis utriusque 

 classis eorumque versioue germanica.' Illiger states that he was induced to 

 undertake this work because " among the generic names, in consequence of 

 neglecting the rules established by Linnaeus, such a number of exception- 

 able ones had gradually crept in, that their rejection could not be delayed, 

 unless it were wished to see a fresh irruption of the ancient barbarism from 

 which that great man had freed us." Had our neighbours on the other 

 bank of the Rhine and across the Channel only followed these Linucean 

 canons as revised by Illiger, in the same manner that the Germans and others 

 of kindred German race have obeyed them, the Nomenclature would not 

 have become such an Augean stable, the cleansing of which is now certainly 

 no easy task. As for the rest, I cannot omit this opportunity of repeating 

 the advice given in the last year's Report, that the English and French 

 therologists and ornithologists should make themselves better acquainted 

 with the above-mentioned c Prodrornus,' which, as a classical work, has the 

 right of appearing as the lawgiver. 



The Geographical Distribution of the Mammalia, exhi- 

 bited by Dr. A, Wagner, First Part. (Abhamll. tier mathem. 

 physik. Klasse der K. Bayerisch. Akadem. der Wissensch. 

 iv, Abth. 1 .) 



The geographical distribution of the Mammalia was first selected as a 

 special task by Zimmcrmann, who carried it through with spirit and know- 

 ledge of his subject. Thirty years later the same subject was taken up, 

 with equal talent, by Illiger, and again, after another thirty years, I have 

 proposed the same task to myself. My memoir is divided into two parts, of 

 which the first appeared some 'time since ; the second will soon follow, and 

 to it will be appended the illustrative charts. 



Lehrbuch der Zootomie, von Dr. Rudolph Wagner. 2te 



