52 



SCIENCE SKETCHES. 



some ten grotesque drawings of impossible fishes 

 which he had observed *' down the river," with 

 notes on their habits, and a hst of the names by 

 which they were known by the French and EngHsh 

 settlers. These Rafinesque duly copied into his 

 note-books, and later he published descriptions 

 of them as representatives of new genera, such as 

 Pogostoma, Aplocentrus, Litholepis, Pilodictis, Po- 

 macampsis, and the like. 



These singular genera, so like and yet so unlike 

 to anything yet known, have been a standing puzzle 

 to students of fishes. Various attempts at identi- 

 fication of them have been made, but in no case 

 have satisfactory results been reached. Many of 

 the hard things which have been said of Rafi- 

 nesque's work rest on these unlucky genera,^ " com- 

 municated to me by Mr. Audubon." The true 

 story of this practical joke was told me by the 

 venerable Dr. Kirtland, who in turn received it 

 from Dr. Bachman, the brother-in-law and scientific 

 associate of Audubon. In the private note-books 

 of Rafinesque I have since found his copies of 

 these drawings, and a glance at these is sufficient 

 to show the extent to which science through him 

 has been victimized. 



About this time Rafinesque turned his mind 

 again toward invention. He invented the present 

 arrangement of coupon bonds, or, as he called it, 

 " the divitial invention." Savings-banks were pro- 



1 I am informed by Dr. J. A. Allen that there are also some 

 unidentified genera of herons, similarly described by Rafinesque 

 from drawings kindly shown him by Mr. Audubon. Apparently 

 these also date from the same unlucky practical joke. 



