410 Transactions. 



questions, such as accentuation or stressing, and the relation of the scientific 

 vocabulary to that of common life. Many of these considerations conflict 

 with one another ; others demand more knowledge and research than the 

 importance of the subject seems to warrant ; and, on the whole, the writer 

 has found the subject exceedingly puzzling. It seemed to him all the more 

 necessary, then, that some attempt should be made to deal with it, and 

 this paper represents such an attempt. 



It may be added that the proposals here outlined are calculated to 

 produce their effect only upon the rising generation. We older scientific 

 men (if the author may be allowed to use the first person) are hardened 

 in sin and beyond hope. 



The only logical scientific system possible would be got by the adoption 

 of a " Continental " Latin pronunciation, or as near an approximation 

 thereto as circumstances might permit. This would have to be rigidly 

 observed so that no exception or anomaly could occur. The adoption 

 of any such system is, however, rendered difficult or impossible by the 

 following considerations : — 



(1.) New Zealand, being a part of the British Empire, should look to 

 Great Britain as its scientific metropolis ; but the unreformed " English " 

 or " insular " pronunciation of Latin still obtains largely in England, so 

 that many, if not all, of the older scientific men use this pronunciation 

 of Latin and Greek botanical and other scientific terms. It will easily be 

 seen how this concerns imported professors, visiting English botanists, and 

 New Zealand students continuing their studies in England. An imported 

 professor, for example, using the insular mode and not choosing to alter it 

 might be almost incomprehensible to his students, all of whom are familiar 

 only with a " reformed " mode. 



(2.) Numbers of words, or parts of words, in the botanical vocabulary 

 appear also in ordinary speech, perfectly anglicized : — 



(a.) Geranium,, Viola, Gentian, Calceolaria, Gijpsophila, Geum, Angelica, 



and other generic names tend naturally to be pronounced in the 



English manner, especially by farmer and gardener ; so also 



Pinus in forestry. 



(6.) Names of native plants which have become familiar to the general 



public of New Zealand through cultivation or otherwise have 



been anglicized beyond recall, such as Celmisia or Senecio. 



(c.) Parts of terms like micro-, uni-, hi-, hydro-, austral-, occurring 



commonly in such words as microscope, universal, Involve, 



hydrophobia, Australia, and thoroughly anglicized, tend to be 



sounded anglice when used scientifically. Thus hydrocofyle is 



usually pronounced haidrocot'ile ; but the two y's in it equally 



represent a Greek v, so that the word ought to be eithei' 



hai'drokotai'le or hi'drokot'ile. Again, it feels uncomfortable to 



speak of " vittadinia australis " as growing in " ostreilia." 



(d.) Special difficulties occur where these words have to be inflected. 



If thev be kept Latin in sound they should have a Latin ]ilural : 



Thus geum should have plural gea ; the Englisli dzhiam should 



have clzhiemz. But words like hydrocotyle, as noticed above, are 



neither Latin nor English, as usually pronounced ; and such 



]ilurals as genera (= dzhenera) are established though genus is 



pronounced as English dzhinas. 



(3.) The vocabulary consists largely of personal names, more or less 



successfully latinized, from many languages — e.g., English, Scotch, Irish, 



