102 



and though I know that such a course is retrospectively im- 

 practicable, yet it might well for the future be " considered 

 ethical " (to quote the authors of the International Code) to give 

 a reasonable meaning for a new name at the time of bestowing 

 it, unless indeed both the reason and the meaning were, as they 

 often are, sufficiently obvious. 



But this is not the only circumstance under which a pro- 

 nounceable combination of letters may fail to be a name. Latin 

 is the recognised medium of zoological and botanical nomen- 

 clature, and words, to be names, should conform both in form 

 and spelling to classical usage. This is especially true of classical 

 names, whose orthography is fixed and certain, for with regard 

 to modern surnames the only possible method which can make 

 for permanency is to adhere absoluteh' to the original spelling. 

 I cannot refrain at this point from entering a protest against 

 the custom sometimes adopted of substituting " v " for " w," 

 and " c " for " k," in such proper names. The reason for such 

 substitution it seems impossible even to guess. Villiamsoni is 

 no more Latin than Williamsoni ; it would no doubt be possible 

 in this particular case to employ the somewhat barbaric form 

 Gulielmidae, but in most instances no such translation would be 

 available ; and what about the essentially English combination 

 " wh " ? " Vh " would not merely not be Latin, but would be 

 utterly unpronounceable besides. On this last point, at any 

 rate, I may be allowed an opinion, as it almost amounts to a 

 personal matter. With regard to the substitution of " c " for 

 " k," there is not even the excuse of a supposed latinity. " K " 

 is as good a Latin letter as " a " or " b." The Romans had but 

 eighteen prenomina at their disposal for their sons, each of 

 which had its recognised abbreviation, and for one of these the 

 letter "K" stood. It was, moreover, and still is, impossible to 

 write the date of more than half the days in the year in Latin 

 \vithout employing this letter, and I cannot conceive of anv 

 stronger claim to a place in the Latin alphabet than is consti- 

 tuted by these two facts. 



And this brings me to the delicate subject of emendations 

 in the form and spelling of names actually in use. I am fully 

 aware that I am treading on dangerous ground, but I intend, 

 notwithstanding, to put my foot down firmly upon it, and to 



