Modern Nomenclature of Natural History. 565 



been published by Mr. Curtis, in his last number of the British 

 Entomology, under the name of Diodontus. 



The genus Pemphredon was established by Latreille in his 

 Precis des Genres, 1796 ; and in his Gen. Crust, et Insec. he 

 expressly refers to the Pemphredon minutus Fab. (or Pem. 

 pallipes of Panzer) as constituting the type of the genus Pem- 

 phredon in the former work; whilst, in his Hist. Nat., vol. iii. 

 (1802), he states the mandibles to be unidentate; which Fabri- 

 cius confirmed by his typical characters of Pemphredon, in 

 1804, In 1806, Jurine proposed the name Cemonus, giving 

 as synonymous the Pemphredon of Latreille and Fabricius, 

 and placing in this genus both P. lugubris and P. minutus (or 

 pallipes). He placed, however, the former, which has biden- 

 tate mandibles and a long peduncle to the abdomen, at the 

 head of the genus. 



More recent observers have considered these two insects, 

 lugubris and minutus, as the types of two distinct genera ; 

 and Dr. Leach, in accordance with his usual plan, considered 

 the two generic, names Cemonus and Pemphredon as syno- 

 nymes, and gave the lugubris as Pemphredon, and the minu- 

 tus as Cemonus. Mr. Curtis, deeming the two generic names 

 as strictly synonymous, and consequently that the second in 

 date ought to be expunged, has employed Pemphredon for 

 the typical Cemonus of Jurine, and for the typical Pemphre- 

 don of Latreille he has proposed a new genus, Diodontus. 



If, however, the principles which I advocate are worthy of 

 adoption, we are at once enabled to solve the difficulty, and 

 obviate the confusion, in this and hundreds of the like cases.* 



In conclusion, I may be allowed a few words upon the na- 

 ture of the names of insects ; and first, with respect to such 

 generic names as have been objected to on account of their 

 length extending beyond three syllables. Every language, as 

 it has been said, consists of two classes of words ; these 

 are, the technical and the ordinary : now, although from 

 the poverty of our language, and the discovery of vari- 

 ous remarkable animals, it is possible that a few technical 

 words may occasionally come into general use, it is ab- 

 surd to expect ever to see the series of technical names of the 

 various sciences becoming household words. There are com- 

 paratively but very few objects which the generality of man- 

 kind ever even see ; and it is rather too much to suppose 



* Scarcely a work upon entomology is published in which numerous 

 fresh instances of this confusion are not to be found, and by which many of 

 the best known species {ex gr. y the locust, bed-bug, sacred beetle of the 

 Egyptians, &c.) are not given, in the works of English, French, and Ger- 

 man authors, under two, and often three, different generic names. 



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