THE CANADIAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 12o 



There seems to be no positive way of proving which book was pub- 

 lished first, but evidence seems to indicate that Schrank's work has 

 priority. The " Vorrde " of Volume i, part i, of Schrank's work is dated 

 March 12, 1 801, and there seems to be but h'ttle doubt that this part 

 appeared in 1801 ; part two then probably appeared in 1802, as its title 

 page indicates. Volume 2 of Hist. Nat. Crust, and Ins. was noted by 

 Illiger in 1803 (p. 282). This volume was supposed to have been 

 published in 1802. Volume 4 of Latreille's work on page 332 refers to 

 W. Kirby " Apum Angliae," which is said to have been published in 1802, 

 and the dedication was written May i, 1802. Considering the slow 

 means of transport, it would seem improbable that Kirby's work could be 

 published in 1802, and be mentioned in a book by Latreille, also published 

 in 1802. Indicating as this does that Latreille's works did not appear in 

 the year their title page is dated, while Schrank's work probably did, we 

 may well assume that Schrank's work has priority. 



The International Committee on Zoological Nomenclature has not, 

 as yet, ruled on cases of different books published on the same date con 

 taining different names for the same animal, but if the Code of 

 Nomenclature adopted by the American Ornithologists' Union is indicative 

 of the ruling of this committee, Arge, which has page precedence over 

 Hyloio?na, will be used, (b) The first reviser rule as defined by the 

 International Committee does not cover the case either, as it refers only 

 to names published in the same work. If, however, the first reviser rule 

 was to be made to apply to such cases, Arge would again have to be used 

 for Hylotoma ; because, although the species of Hyloioma had been 

 revised by Fabricius, Fallen, Klug, Dahlbom, Hartig, Thomson, Cameron 

 and others before Konow came into the field, Konow is the first reviser of 

 the GENERA, as he is the first to bring the generic name Arge in connec- 

 tion with the other genera of the group, and to give characters for their 

 separation. 



All this shows the desirability of using Arge for Hylotoma, as the 

 European master has done. Now the pendulum has swung, it would be 

 folly to try and swing it back. Such oscillation will never bring stability 

 in nomenclature, a thing much needed and desired. 



(b) See Canon XVII, p. xlix of the 1908 edition, which says: "Of names 

 published simultaneously in different books, that shall be taken which stands on 

 the anterior page. 



