248 JOURNAL, BOMB A Y NA TURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol XX. 



the process of fertilization of Sunflowers, and I hope to arrive at some import- 

 ant results after another season's trial. 



S. V. SHEVADE, 

 Asstt. Imperial Economical Botanist, 

 Kirkee, 9th November 1909. 



No. XXXIII.— SCIENTIFIC NOMENCLATURE. 



With reference to Mr. Meyrick's correction of my note regarding the 

 gender of the word " Lygosoma " I should like to be allowed to make a few 

 remarks in defence of my plea. First, then, I must thank Mr Meyrick for 

 pointing out the error, and can only offer my apologies to Major Wall and 

 any others whom I may have temporarily misled. At the same time I would 

 remark that the note was written as a " plea for uniformity, " and I had no 

 desire to set myself up as an authority on the subject {vide the words 

 " I fancy" in my note); though I admit that I did not doubt at the time that 

 the word should be neuter. Thanks to Mr. Meyrick, I now see the error and 

 admit it, but I would not withdraw the plea. Instead I would address it to 

 the attention of Mr. Boulenger, Sir Joseph Hooker and other authorities 

 to whom we look for our information in matters scientific. I mention 

 Sir Joseph Hooker, because, if what Mr. Meyrick tells us is correct which I do 

 not doubt, then we must surely say Melastoma malabathrica, etc Surely also 

 we must not say "' Lycodon aulicus" nor " Oligodon dor salts 1 , in speaking of 

 those snakes, but must make them neuter. Another matter of nomenclature 

 which has always annoyed me is the apparently arbitrary way in which the 

 final " i " of proper names attached to species is doubled or not. Either it 

 is correct to double it or it is not. I imagine that it is not to my mind, even 

 euphony does not require it, but perhaps Mr. Meyrick will be able to spare a 

 moment of his valuable time to inform us definitely? There is no lack of 

 instances, thus Blanford, though usually writing but one "i" in the volume 

 dealing with Mammals of the Fauna of &• I. series, has written " HardwicMi " 

 (page 340). It is only the very great importance, as it seems to me, of 

 accuracy in all details connected with Natural History, which induces me to 

 continue the subject, and not any desire to open in our columns a con- 

 troversy on the vexed question of priority and usage, which does not appear 

 to be affected seriously by such minor alterations. By way of further apology 

 for my own inaccuracy, I may say that, though I am now a constant reader of 

 Nature, I have not been so for very long, and consequently did not see 

 Mr. Meyrick's note on the subject to which he refers. 



F. E. W. VENNING:. 

 Haka, Chin Hills, 

 19 th January 1910. 





