766 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 830 



mission has decided to propose to the congress 

 the trial of a proposition which it is hoped will 

 meet with the approval of both sides of the 

 controversy, namely: 



1. The commission invites all zoologists to 

 send to the secretary of the commission, prior 

 to November 1, 1910, a list of 100 zoological 

 generic names which they consider should be 

 studied in connection with the preparation of 

 an " official list." Each name should be ac- 

 companied either by the name of the author 

 of the generic name, or by an indication of 

 the group to which it belongs. 



2. AH systematists are invited to send a 

 separate list of the 50 to 100 generic names 

 in their specialty which they look upon as the 

 most important and most generally used. 

 Each name should be accompanied by the full 

 and complete original bibliographic reference, 

 by the name of the type species, determined 

 according to article 30 of the international 

 rules, and by the name of the order and family 

 to which the genus belongs. 



3. All zoologists and paleontologists who 

 give courses in general zoology are invited to 

 supply the secretary with a list of the text- 

 books used in said courses so that said books 

 may be indexed for generic names. 



4. The commission will alphabetize aU the 

 generic names sent in and will endeavor, ac- 

 cording to circumstances, to determine which 

 are the 100 to 500 most commonly quoted 

 genera. 



5. The genera selected will be submitted to 

 specialists in the groups in question who will 

 be requested to submit opinions on the nomen- 

 clatorial status of said names. 



6. Upon return of the lists from the special- 

 ists, the commission will endeavor to test the 

 names, according to the international rules, 

 and if feasible will publish a list of the genera 

 in question with their most commonly used 

 names and their correct names. 



1. If the undertaking is successful, the zool- 

 ogists of the world will be invited to give to 

 the commission the benefit of their criticisms 

 not later than July 1, 1912, so that the com- 

 mission can restudy the names and submit to 

 the next congress — 



8. An official list of generic names, with 

 their genotypes ; and with the 



9. Proposition that the congress adopt said 

 list and a 



10. Eesolution to the efPect that no zoologist 

 shall upon nomenclatorial grounds change any 

 name in said list unless he first submits to the 

 commission his reasons for making the change 

 and unless the commission considers the rea- 

 sons valid. 



The commission believes that this proposi- 

 tion is feasible, but for the present views it in 

 the light of an experiment, dependent to no 

 small extent upon the question whether a 

 proper amount of cooperation is forthcoming. 

 In this connection the commission takes the 

 liberty of inviting attention to the fact that 

 the great advances in nomenclature have been 

 made by colleagues who have shown a convic- 

 tion in their views sufficient to induce them to 

 devote some time to the subject. 



Amendments to the " Begles internationales 

 de la nomenclature zoologique." — In its execu- 

 tive sessions the commission has considered 

 thirty propositions which have been submitted 

 as amendments to the present international 

 rules. Of these propositions, the commission 

 unanimously recommends to the congress the 

 adoption of the following: 



Art. 4: For the word root, substitute the 

 word stem. 



Art. 2Y (b) : For the word larva, substitute 

 the words any stage in the life history. 



Art. 35 : Insert as a third paragraph the 

 following : 



" Specific names of the same origin and 

 meaning shall be considered homonyms if they 

 are distinguished from each other only by the 

 following differences: 



(a) The use of w, os and e, as cwruleus, ccer- 

 uleus, ceruleusj ei, i and y, as chiropus, 

 cheiropus; c and k, as microdon, milcrodon. 



(i) The aspiration or non-aspiration of a 

 consonant, as oxyryncus, oxyrhynchus. 



(c) The presence or absence of a c before t, 

 as autumnalis, auctumnalis. 



(d) By a single or double consonant: lit- 

 oralis, littoralis. 



