192 AMERICAN JOURNAL 



NOTE ON GADINIA 



BY W. II. DALL. 



Dr. J. G. Cooper, in a late number of the Journal (VI, No.. 

 IV, p. 319), takes exception to the consolidation of Gadinia and 

 Rowellia. In defending his so-called genus Rowellia, he has 

 fallen still further into error. With regard to the main ques- 

 tion, I am ready to admit that it is not absolutely proved that 

 the two are identical, but it seems to me necessary, in order that 

 a genus may be accepted, that the proof that it is different from 

 those previously established should be brought forward ; and no 

 such proof has yet been made known, while it is almost abso- 

 lutely certain that there is no difference either in shell or ani- 

 mal. Dr. Cooper is in error in stating that my description was 

 founded wholly on the species which is the type of his Rowellia ; 

 on the contrary it is the result of an exhaustive examination of 

 all the literature and descriptions relating to the genus G-adinia. 

 The genus Rowellia was founded on the supposed pectinated ten- 

 tacles of the type, and having shown that in the adult, at least, 

 (as also in the youngest specimens I have seen), the pectination 

 does not exist, it is hardly necessary for Dr. Cooper to fall back 

 upon the possible indefiniteness of the figure in defiance of a 

 plain statement. He then says that we may suppose Adams' 

 figure to be original ; but how we can suppose so when the refer- 

 ence to it shows that it is copied from Philippi, I cannot under- 

 stand. He follows this by saying that, according to my table of 

 synonyms, all names, except Rowellia, were founded on the 

 Mediterranean species. If he will examine the paper with ordi- 

 nary care, he will observe that the type of G-adinia is a West 

 African species, and the types of Mouretia and Muretia are 

 West American species ; facts which I have taken care to state 

 categorically. 



