RANDOM NOTES ON NATURAL HISTORY. 



37 



money return. But in four or five 3'ears a 

 plantation could be thinned out for walking- 

 sticks, al\v;i3-s in demand, in eight years for 

 hoop poles, for which the supply is always 

 short, and later for numerous other uses, 

 leaving finally the "standards" for fruit 

 and timber. 



Exit Helix, Euter— What? 



[written for random notes ] 



The Academy- of Natural Sciences, of 

 Philadelphia, contains one of the largest 

 collections of shells in the world. Figures 

 or specimens of everj^ known species are dis- 

 pla3'ed therein in such a manner as to be 

 readily seen and easily studied ; the whole 

 collection being artistically^ as well as scien- 

 tifically' arranged in its respective classes, 

 orders, families, and groups. Many of the 

 genera have also been divided and subdi- 

 vided. Nevertheless, it has been deemed 

 advisable to retain their older standard 

 names as well as those of more recent coin- 

 age. 



These laterdivisions are shown by printed 

 cards placed in certain parts of the cases, 

 following which are the special varieties of- 

 the genus to which they are supposed to re- 

 fer. As a rule, however, the standard generic 

 names or their initials are applied to all. 

 Among C^'pnea for instance, one division 

 may read " Aricia," another "• Luponia," 

 another '"■ Epona," and so on, but upon every 

 card on which specimens of each group or 

 sub-genus are glued, the original name 

 Cyprsea or its initial is written, as Cypra^a 

 Arabica, C. caurica, C. cicercula, etc. 

 So, in the division of Helices a group 

 card ma}' read Mesodon, Stenotrema, or any 

 one of the thousand other names given, 3'et 

 upon ever}' specimen label may be seen the 

 old generic word Helix or its initial. 



This is the system established b}' Mr. 

 George W. Tryon, Jr., conservator of the 

 collection, who is, without doubt, one of the 

 most practical and best informed concholo- 

 gists living. For the pleasure and perhaps 

 profit of a few experts, it may have been advis- 

 able to break up the various well-known 

 genera into a dozen or more varieties, each 

 laden with some stupendous name scarcely 

 worth the ink with which it is written, but 

 for the mass of students the leading generic 



name is quite sufficient, saving, as it does, a 

 deal of confusion if not an unnecessarj' cram- 

 ming of the memory also. Perhaps not one 

 conchologist in a dozen would be able to re- 

 call, if asked to do so, the characters of Aricia 

 Arabica, or Stenotreiua Leaii, though the}^ 

 all would probabl}' describe them readil}' 

 if referred to as Cyprced Arabica or Helix 

 Leaii. Complications in this as in all other 

 branches of science should therefore be 

 studiously avoided. But few men can 

 remember the names of even the three or four 

 hundred standard genera alluded to. What 

 foil}' then to suppose that they can acquire 

 an inkling of the thousands of divisional 

 terms suggested b}' recent writers. 



Were I a Verrill or a Ball I might be more 

 chary about airing my opinions, perhaps. 

 As it is, I hardl}' dare to hint that a large per- 

 centage of these innovations seem to smack 

 more of the gratification of personal vault}' 

 than of a desire to benefit science. 



In the light of these premises, I was not 

 a little surprised to notice in the March num- 

 ber of Random Notes, that m}^ good friend, 

 Mr. Carpenter, had decided to exclude the 

 name Helix from his forthcoming catalogue 

 of Rhode Island Land shells, preferring, 

 instead, such equivocal names as Polyg3"ra, 

 Stenotrema, and scores of others similar in 

 character. 



Though knowing Mr. Carpenter to be a 

 most thorough conchologist, I could not help 

 thinking that for once his judgment had 

 betrayed him. 



Otherwise it seems impossible to believe 

 that he would attempt the annihilation of one 

 of the most familiar names known to science ; 

 much less that he should suppose such a 

 result could be attained. 



A sorrowful da}' it will be when a hundred 

 ambiguous terms replace the word which 

 now embraces them all. 



And then, when some importunate student 

 shall ask the meaning of each, how sad it 

 will be to hear m3' friend repeat the only 

 possible answer, "Simply a variety of 

 Helix." John Ford. 



Philadelphia, March 18, 1886. 



Seasonable Notes. — The first shad of the 

 season taken in Warren River, Monda}', 

 April 12. Brown Thrushes arrived in the 

 vicinit3' of Providence, April 14. White- 

 bellied Swallows, April 9. 



