SCIENTIFIC NAMES FOKM. 



123 



clature is not now studied, in the name of formic acid. This acid was 

 first obtained from the red ant, (Formica rufa,) and should have been 

 called fonnicic acid. 



There is one rule, which seems to be well established, and deserves 

 particular notice, as it appears to conflict with that laid down above. In 

 such words as Distoma and Leptothrix, the last components stoma and 

 thrix are used in the nominative case, which does not here show the true 

 stem. The reason is that no termination has been added in these cases : 

 when, however, that is done, the true stem ought to appear, as in 

 Distomatidse (erroneously written Distomidas) and Leptotrichum. It is, 

 indeed, impossible to insist absolutely upon obedience to these rules ; 

 euphony must be consulted, and will occasionally give the preference to 

 the less correct form. Moreover, the ancients themselves sometimes 

 failed to observe then* own precedents. Thus from Icqiis, (stem, lapid-,) " a 

 stone," they obtained lapicida, " a stone-cutter," after which Linnteus 

 named Helix laincida; but from those who know what it ought to be it 

 requires an effort not to wi-ite H. lapidicida, as has been in fact some- 

 times unconsciously done. 



It may be useful to give an epitome of the chief Latin terminations, 

 with the rules concerning them, so far as they concern our purpose. The 

 genitive case, which answers to our possessive case, and means "of (a 

 thing,)" is given as well as the nominative, because it is often required, 

 as wiU be seen further on. In Latin, nouns are divided into five classes, 

 called declensions, but only the first three of these are important to us 

 words belonging to the others being very rarely met with. Those 

 belonging to the first declension end in -a and -e, and are feminine, or m 

 -es, and are mascuhne ; those of the second in -xis and -er, and are mascu- 

 line, (except names of trees in -us, as Fagus, which are always feminine,*) 

 or in -um, and are neuter. More than two-thirds of the nouns used in 

 scientific nomenclature belong to these declensions : these ax-e, therefore 

 the most important, and are also the easiest to understand. 



Nouns. 



II. 



Nom. 

 -a,/, 

 -e,/. 

 -es, in. 

 -lis, m. 

 -er, m. 

 -um, n. 



Examples. 



rasa, a rose, roscB, roses. 



crmnhe, a cabbage, crambce, cabbages. 



see notet 



rub us, a bramble, rubi, brambles. 



liber, a book, libri, books. 



cilium, an eyelash, cilia, eyelashes. 



The method of appljdng this and the following table is as follows : 



— Take away from the word the letters given in the first column ; what 



remains is the stem, and to it must be added the respective letters given 



in the other columns. There is one exception ; in words ending in -er 



the r forms an essential part of the stem. As examples we may take 



fungus, a mushroom, fungi, of a mushroom, fungi, mushrooms, fungorum, 



of mushrooms, fung- being the stem ; but in liber, a book, lihr- is 



* The chief example of a non-feminine name of a tree, (except those ending in 

 -um,) IS Acer, a maple, which is neuter, e.g., Acer trilobatum. Names of large 

 shrubs, or even of small trees, ending in -us, as Euonvmus, are made feminine or 

 maBcmhne According to taste ; thus we meet with both Euonymus Eurovaa and 

 Euonymus Europcxius. j. u-'^ 



ITo this class belong the numerous geneiic names ending in -ites, as Phi-aemitea 

 Ammonites, Perouosporites, &c. > t. c°, 



