Classification of the Mammals 



In order to differentiate among the constantly 

 growing list of animals and to establish some method 

 of naming them that would serve as a universal stan- 

 dard, Carl von Linne, in 1768, made an attempt to 

 organize animals of obvious relationship into groups, 

 according to characters common to a great many indi- 

 viduals. 



While the Linnaen systen has been modified and 

 improved to a large extent, the present system retains 

 much of its original character. Too frequently the 

 mentioning of a scientific name stultifies interest. To 

 many persons it sounds ^'highbrow," and immediately 

 they set up an antagonism toward it. But it must be 

 remembered that common or vernacular names are 

 wholly unreliable and there may be a dozen common 

 names for the same creature, even within a limited 

 area. A person from one part of the range of some 

 widely distributed form would not recognize the ani- 

 mal by the common name in another section. Many 

 people in Pennsylvania at the present time believe that 

 the woodchuck, marmot and groundhog are three dif- 

 ferent animals, when these names are all applied to the 

 same individual. 



After all, a scientific name isn't any more difficult 

 than many other words which we all acquire in our 

 daily conversations and reading, in a less conscious 

 way. Such words as crepe de chine, lavaliere, table 

 d'hote and automobile, are just as foreign in their 

 make-up and meaning. 



As a rule, the scientific name of an animal has a 

 real significance and one can soon become accustomed 



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