CLASSIFICATION OF BACTERIA 49 



make sure that each group, from species to class, shall bear a single 

 universal name. The name need not be appropriate; it need only 

 be stable. It is an arbitrary label, not a description. If the door 

 be once opened to criticism on the ground of inappropriateness, 

 stability must disappear. 



" It is in order to ensure uniformity and stability of nomenclature 

 that the International Codes referred to have been formulated; and 

 it is to the International Rules of Botanical Nomenclature (1910) 

 that we, as bacteriologists, should naturally turn for guidance. 



Leaving out a great many minor rules and recommendations, 

 the most important of the rules which would affect bacteriological 

 practice may be cited as follows : 



Chapter I, Article 7.- "Scientific names are in Latin for all 

 groups." 



Chapter II, Article 10. "Every individual plant belongs to a 

 species (species), every species to a genus (genus), every genus to 

 a family (familia), every family to an order (ordd), every order to a 

 class (classis), every class to a division (divisio)." 



Chapter III, Section 1, Article 15. "Each natural group of 

 plants can bear in science only one valid designation, namely, the 

 oldest, provided that it is in conformity with the rules of Nomen- 

 clature and the conditions laid down in Articles 19 and 20 of 

 Section 2." 



Chapter III, Section 2, Record iii. "Orders are designated 

 preferably by the name of one of the principal families, with the 

 ending ales." 



Chapter III, Section 3, Article 21. "Families (familicp) are 

 designated by the name of one of their genera or ancient generic 

 names, with the ending acecp." 



Chapter III, Section 3, Article 23. "Names of subfamilies 

 (subfamilice) are taken from the name of one of the genera in the 

 group, with the ending oideop. The same holds for the tribes 

 (tribus) with the ending eoe and for the sub tribes (subtribus) with the 

 ending incp." 



Chapter III, Section 3, Article 24. "Genera receive names 

 (substantive adjectives used as substantives) in the regular singular 

 number and written with a capital letter which may be compared 

 with our own family names. These names may be taken from any 

 source whatever and may even be composed in an absolutely 

 arbitrary manner. ' ' 



Chapter III, Section 3, Article 26.- "All species, even those that 

 singly constitute a genus, are designated by the name of the genus to 

 which they belong, followed by a name (or epithet) termed specific, 

 usually of the nature of an adjective (forming a combination of two 

 names, a binomial or binary name)." 



Chapter III, Section 3, Article 26, Record \iU. "The specific 

 4 



