284 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLIX, No. 1264 



all zoological generic names should be re- 

 garded as masculine. I enclose herewith a 

 copy of his article on the subject: perhaps 

 you could quote some portions of it in Science 

 in order to remind the zoological world of an 

 eminently reasonable proposal. 



Wm. Evans Hoyle 

 National Museum of Wales 



My suggestion is that a teclinical specific name 

 in Zoology should 'be released from the obligation 

 of agreeing -with the supposed gender of the generic 

 name (to wihich it is attached. 



Simplicity would be artitained by acceptance of 

 the convention that in zoology a generic name, 

 whatever its termination, is to be regarded as of 

 the masculine gender. 



That some scholarly ear might occasionally be 

 offended, is a minor disadvantage compared with 

 the general utility of the convention. A famous 

 historical character was hailed as ' ' our Hng Maria 

 rPheresa, " without any influence on the actual sex 

 of thai distinguished person. Similarly many men 

 have been named Maria without in consequence 

 becoming women or in any degree effeminate. The 

 termination of a generic name is a very indifferent 

 reason for determining a zoological species as 

 either masculine, feminine, or neuter, seeing that 

 the species itself usually includes two of the gen- 

 ders, and sometimes all three. Very commonly all 

 the normal individuals of a species are either of 

 the male or female sex. Tet, under the existing 

 rule, the species must ' sometimes have a neuter 

 name, as ithougih it referred to something inorganic 

 or of undiscriminated sex. Such considerations, 

 however, are of subordinate importance compared 

 with the troublesome character of the present ar- 

 rangement. As every one is aware, it repeatedly 

 happens that by accessions to knowledge, genera 

 become unwieldy and have to be subdivided. The 

 new names, it may be, do not agree in gender with 

 the old, and then the, transferred species must all 

 have their terminations altered. But, apart from 

 this consequential trouble, naturalists for ages past 

 have found ithe determination of generic genders 

 a stumbling-block. How much more is this likely 

 to be the case in the future, with the continuous 

 decline of classical studies! Without actual ex- 

 amples, few would credit the difficulties encoun- 

 tered and the errors committed by naturalists in 

 their endeavors to comply with the existing rule 

 or practise. — T. E. R. Stetobiug in Knowledge 

 (1910). 



HAY FEVER AND THE NATIONAL FLOWER 



To THE Editor of Science: The attention 

 of the American Hayfever Prevention Asso- 

 ciation has been called to the article on " Hay 

 Fever and the National Flower " in a recent 

 issue of your journal. 



The research department of this association, 

 which was established in 1915, has made a 

 thorough investigation of the causes of hay 

 fever, being assisted in this work by special- 

 ists and botanists in practically every state 

 of the union. The pollens of all the most com- 

 mon plants and trees have been tested and 

 their relation to hay fever established. 



Generally speaking, the principal causes of 

 fall hay fever in the northern, eastern and 

 southern states^ are the pollens of the rag- 

 weeds (Ambrosiaceaj), these being replaced 

 in the Pacific and Eocky Mountain States^ 

 by the wormwoods (artemisias) The chief 

 causes of spring hay fever are the pollens of 

 the grasses in all sections. About five per 

 cent, of hay fever cases are due to other 

 pollens. The golden rod, hovcever, is not in- 

 cluded in these, having proven a clear " alibi." 



For those not already familiar with the 

 subject, the following statement is made: 



I 



THE GOLDEN ROD IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR 

 HAY FEVER 



1. It does not conform to the description of 

 hay fever plants, which is as follows:^ (1) 

 They are wind-pollinated, (2) very numerous, 

 (3) the flowers are inconspicuous, without 

 bright color or scent, and the pollen is formed 

 in great quantities. The flowers of the golden 

 rod are insect-pollinated, have bright colors 

 and scent, and the pollen is not formed in 

 large quantities. 



1 ' ' Hayfever : Its Cause and Prevention, ' ' W. 

 Scheppegrell, M.D., Journal of the American Med- 

 ical Association, March 4, 1916. 



2 ' ' Hayfever : Its Cause and Prevention in the 

 Bocky Mountain and Pacific States, ' ' W. Scheppe- 

 grell, M.D., United Sibaites Public Health Reports, 

 July 20, 1917. 



3 ' ' Hayfever and Its Prevention, ' ' W. Scheppe- 

 grell, M.D., United States Public Health Reports, 

 July 21, 1916. 



