AUGUST 25, 1899. ] 
ing the humanities as were matriculated in the 
sciences, or by actual count 63 % against 37 %. 
CHARLES BUNDY WILSON. 
THE UNIVERSITY OF IowA, 
DEPARTMENT OF GERMAN. 
NOTES ON THE NOMENCLATURE OF SOME 
NORTH AMERICAN FOSSIL VERTEBRATES. 
In Palzontological Bulletin No. 16, p. 5, pub- 
lished August, 1873, Professor E. D. Cope de- 
scribed a new genus of rodents which he called 
Gymnoptychus. Of this genus he described at the 
same time four species, viz. : chrysodon, nasutus, 
trilophus and minutus. Later in a paper published 
in the Seventh Annual Report of the U. S. 
Geological and Geographical Survey of the Ter- 
ritories, on page 477, Professor Cope shows 
that he had determined that his G. chrysodon 
was identical with Ischyromys typus, described by 
Dr. Leidy in 1856. Accordingly G. chrysodon 
is recorded as a synonym of I. typus, while 
minutus and trilophus are retained under Gym- 
noptychus, the form nasutus being regarded as a 
probable synonym of trilophus. The same dis- 
position is made of the species in Cope’s Ver- 
tebrata of the Tertiary Formations of the West, 
except that nasutus is there made a synonym of 
minutus. It is evident that an error in nomen- 
clature has been committed. Professor Cope 
nowhere definitely states which of his species 
he originally regarded as the type of Gymnopty- 
chus; but, considering the way in which the 
species chrysodon is associated with the new 
genus Gymnoptychus and Professor Cope’s prac- 
tice in other cases, we are justified in believing 
that he regarded chrysodon as the type. But if 
this conclusion is contested there is indubitable 
evidence. The characters of Gymnoptychus are 
derived from the dentition of both upper and 
lower jaws ; and chrysodon was the only species 
of which he possessed both mandible and max- 
illa. Itmust, therefore, be regarded as the type 
of Gymnoptychus. Hence, when chrysodon was 
proved to be identical with Ischyromys typus, 
Gymnoptychus became a synonym of Ischyromys, 
and was no longer available as a generic name 
for the species which had been associated with 
it. These require a new generic name, and I 
therefore propose Adjidaumo, having for its type 
Cope’s Gymnoptychus minutus. Adjidaumo is 
SCIENCE. 253 
taken from Longfellow’s Hiawatha, The known 
species are A. minutus and A trilophus. 
Mr. E. S. Riaeas has recently proposed in 
Field Col. Mus., Geol., Vol. I., p. 183, a new 
generic name, Protogaulus, for the reception 
of Meniscomys hippodus, since he considers that 
the species is not congeneric with the others 
which haye hitherto been associated with it. 
This new genus Mr. Riggs arranges in the family 
Mylagaulide. Evenif Mr. Riggs’ views regard- 
ing the generic distinctness of hippodus and re- 
garding its family relationships prove to be cor- 
rect, he has proceeded in an improper way to 
express his conclusions. The type of the genus 
Meniscomys is the species hippodus, and in this 
genus it must remain, unless it can be shown 
either that Meniscomys is preoccupied or that it 
isa synonym of some earlier genus. Hippodus 
is provided for; it is the other species which 
are deprived of generic name by the removal of 
hippodus. They, however, may find lodgment 
under Marsh’s Allomys. As the matter stands, 
Protogaulus is merely a synonym of Meniscomys, 
and both possibly synonyms of Allomys. 
In the American Journal of Science, 1871, Vol. 
II., p. 125, Professor Marsh described, from the 
Bridger Eocene of Wyoming, a fossil carnivore 
which he called Canis montanus. ‘This name, 
however, was preoccupied, having been em- 
ployed in 1836 by Pearson. In the Journal of 
the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Vol. V., p. 318, 
he describes a fox which he called Canis vulpes 
montana. Although this animal is regarded by 
some as at most a subspecies of Canis (Vulpes) 
alopex, and although Professor Marsh’s species 
probably belongs to a different genus, neverthe- 
less, the latter species is shut out from the en- 
joyment of the name montanus. I shall apply 
to it the name Canis ? marshii. 
Iv is necessary to call the attention of paleon- 
tologists to the fact that the genus Hypotemnodon 
can not be employed for the two species which 
have been arranged under it. Hypotemnodon was 
proposed in 1894, by Dr. John Eyerman, in the 
American Geologist, Vol. XIV., p. 320, the type 
species being Professor Cope’s Temnocyon cory- 
pheus. But already, in 1890, in an article en- 
titled ‘The Dogs of the American Miocene,’ 
published in the Princeton College Bulletin, Vol. 
