192 



Thomas Nomenclature of Measurements. 



after defined, and readers are expected to know by heart every 

 thing that the user has ever written on the subject,- footnotes 

 and all, in order to understand what is meant by the particular 

 term employed. Such a state of things has many inconveniences, 

 and it is hoped the present communication, if it meets with the 

 approval of other workers on the subject, may do a little toward 

 putting an end to the existing confusion. 



As long ago as 1894,* by agreeing with Dr. Nehring for the 

 definition of the terms basal and basilar in our own future writ 



ings, I made a first step in this direction, and the present is 

 an amplification of the principle then adopted. 



All the difficulty has arisen from the fact that both at the 

 anterior and the posterior ends of the skull there are two meas 

 urement points, so that there are four different ways in which 

 the basal length of the skull may be taken, and under that 

 name some authors have adopted nearly every one of them. 



It is clear that if a definite name be given to each one of the 

 four measurements, authors, by using these names, will be en 

 abled to give the measurements they fancy without causing con 

 fusion in the minds of their readers as to their exact meaning, 



*Ann. & Mag. Nat. Hist., Ser. 6, XIII, p. 203. 



