100 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



researches, and in his official capacity was much engaged in the preparation 

 for the removal to South Kensiugton of the Geological Collections, which 

 since 1857 had been separated from the minerals. By his advice, which 

 his early training as an architect qualified him to give, the basement and 

 ground-floors of the right wiug of the new Museum were considerably 

 modified so as to increase the accommodation for the collections. This 

 work harassed him much, and feeling unequal to the anxiety consequent 

 on the approaching removal he resigned his appointment in 1880. In 

 1885 he had a paralytic stroke, from which he never entirely recovered, 

 and died Jan. 21st, 1888, in his seventy-eighth year. 



The use of the word " feral." — If " English as she is spoke " is to be 

 reduced to those words only which are correctly formed, the language will 

 suffer a considerable diminution, but in many cases undoubtedly no loss. 

 However, the elimination of the word " feral," on whatever ground, until 

 some other conveying precisely the same meaning be introduced and 

 accepted, would be a serious deprivation to naturalists ; and before parting 

 with it the subject needs calm consideration from more than one point of 

 view. " Colonist," as suggested by Mr. Slater (supra p. 64), would not at 

 all meet the requirements of the case. It might apply in New Zealand to 

 Zosterops lateralis, which has lately of its own accord settled in that country, 

 but to few more — certainly not to the numerous animals of species once 

 domesticated that have, so far as circumstances permit, resumed in new 

 lands the habits of their wild and remote ancestors. The first application 

 of the word to animals under these conditions, and to such animals alone, 

 seems due to Colonel Hamilton Smith, who, writing in 1839 of wild Dogs 

 and Dogs that had run wild, says: — "On this subject our language is 

 deficient in a sufficiently correct terminology. The French have adopted a 

 clear distinction, by naming the dog considered as a genuine wild species, 

 ivild dog (chien sauvage), and the dog run wild from a domestic state (chien 

 maron), maroon dog, or more properly, perhaps, errant dog; but as this 

 word is agaiu a Gallicism, it might be better to adopt a native term and 

 call it Feral dog." (Naturalist's Library, Mammalia, vol. ix. pp. 91, 92). 

 This suggestion, as everyone knows, has been generally adopted by zoological 

 writers, to the great convenience of all concerned. If occasionally, as would 

 seem lately to have happened, some one has used the word in a wrong 

 sense the blame lies with him and not with the word. Though Colonel 

 Smith does not expressly give the derivation, the context evidently shows 

 that he had the Latin /era in his mind, and therefore " feral " is as well 

 formed an English adjective as are many others in constant use. But then 

 it is objected that there is no Latin word fer alls from fera, as there ought 

 to be, while there is a Latin word feralis with a wholly different meaning 

 and derivation. The existence of the last is undoubted ; but then we must 

 please to remember that this is feralis with the first vowel long, while if there 



