May 12, 1911] 



SCIENCE 



731 



ing it in print, but we are 

 welcome its appearance. 



glad at length to 



Besides various abortive attempts and frag- 

 mentary translations, two completed English 

 versions of the " History of Animals " had 

 been published, one in 1809 by Thomas Taylor 

 and another in 1862 by Richard Oreswell. 

 Both works evince not only an inadequate 

 knowledge of Greek, but an extremely imper- 

 fect acquaintance with zoology and conse- 

 quently would very frequently mislead the 

 reader. The following extracts from the 

 three translations will serve to give an idea 

 of the characteristics of the several versions 

 and might be paralleled to an indefinite extent : 



APES, etc. 

 Taylor, p. 48 (II., viii., ix.). 



Some animals however have an ambiguous na- 

 ture, because they partly imitate man and partly 

 •quadrupeds, such as apes, the coebi [a kind of 

 apes] and the cynocephali. But the coebus has the 

 tail of an ape; and the cynocephali have the same 

 form Tvith apes, except that they are larger and 

 stronger, and they have a more canine face. Their 

 manners also are more savage, and they have teeth 

 more canine and strong. 

 Creswell, p. 32 (II., v., 1). 



Some animals unite in their nature the charac- 

 teristics of man and quadrupeds, as apes, monkeys 

 and cynocephali. The monkey is an ape with a 

 tail; cynocephali have the same form as apes, but 

 are larger and stronger, and their faces are more 

 like dogs' faces; they are naturally fierce, and 

 their teeth are more like dogs' teeth, and stronger 

 than in other genera. 

 Thompson, 502°, lines 16-22. 



Some animals share the properties of man and 

 the quadrupeds, as the ape, the monkey and the 

 baboon. The monkey is a tailed ape. The baboon 

 resembles the ape in form, only that it is bigger 

 and stronger, more like a dog in face, and is more 

 savage in its habits, and its teeth are more dog- 

 like and more powerful. 



These are versions of the following Greek 

 original copied from Bekker's edition : 



"Evia 8e tHiv ^<o<i)v iTraij.cj)OTepL^eL rr/v cJ}v(tlv t<u t 

 avdpioTnii Koi rots Tcrpdirocnv, olov TriOiqKoi koX 

 Kr/jioL Kol KvvoKe(f>a\oi. "Eo'Tt 8' o /jiv k^jSos ttiOt]- 

 Kos e^cov oipdv. Kai ot KWOKCc^aXoi Se t^v avTrjv 



t)(Ov<ji ixop(j)r]v TOL<; irt9rjK0i<s, 7r\.rjV i).ull,ove<3 r eicrt 

 Kol lcr)(yp6rcpoi Kai to, irpocrunra e)(OvTe<; Kwoeioecr- 

 Tepaj en SaypLtoTepd re to, ydr] Kai tov<; ooovras 

 t)(OV(TL KDvoetSecTepovs Kai icT'^vpoTtpov^. 



A comparison of the several versions with 

 the original shows that Taylor's is quite un- 

 reliable, Creswell's is the most literal, and 

 Thompson's correct, free and the most idio- 

 matic from an English point of view. 



Taylor has corrupted the word kebos into 

 coebus, for which there is no justification, and 

 has reversed what Aristotle said as to kebos, 

 the original author declaring that it is a 

 pithekos with a tail. 



Creswell's chief fault, in this paragraph, is 

 the omission of the English equivalent for 

 " cynocephali " — baboons ; the last four words 

 are uncalled for. 



Thompson's is pervaded with a full knowl- 

 edge of what Aristotle said. He has preferred 

 to change the number in several cases, giving 

 the singular instead of the plural. His use of 

 the word ape (instead of macaque), in com- 

 mon with his predecessors, may mislead many, 

 inasmuch as ape is now so generally restricted 

 to the large, tailless simiids (chimpanzee, 

 gorilla, etc.) that they are involuntarily 

 brought to the mind, to the exclusion of 

 others, by the word. Nevertheless, Professor 

 Thompson may claim perfect justification in 

 the fact that the word originally included the 

 monkeys and that the macaques are still pop- 

 ularly known as apes, the northernmost and 

 typical species being especially called Barbary 

 ape. Some might also prefer to express Aris- 

 totle's meaning by a phrase like " Some ani- 

 mals combine in their shape characteristics of 

 man and quadrupeds." 



One more example (descriptive of the Greek 

 catfish glanis) will illustrate other weaknesses 

 of the older translators. Book VIII. of the 

 " History " is under consideration. 



THE GLANIS 



Taylor, 325 (VIII., xx.). 



. . . the glanis, in consequence of swimming on 

 the surface of the water, is injured by the deadly 

 influence of the dog-star, and is laid asleep by 

 very loud thunder. Sometimes, likewise, the carp 

 is affected in this manner, but in a less degree. 



