273 



other known genera, and so by these means to ascertain which is the 

 best of these classifications. 



Had it been our task to publish a complete monograph of the 

 genus, we should have prosecuted all the researches necessary for 

 thoroughly illustrating this subject ; but, as we are confined to a gene- 

 ral review for the sake of placing in the genus a description of a great 

 number of new species, we feel bound to abstain from all which does 

 not immediately concern the task we have undertaken, as the reader 

 may supply what is wanting by consulting the works of the naturalists 

 quoted above. 



When we enumerate the species of Terebra, published by natural- 

 ists of the last century, we are astonished at the small number. 



In the 12th edition of the 'Systema Naturse,' Linnaeus had put 

 together only ten in the 7th section of his genus Buccinum, which 

 includes only Terehra. 



Martini and Chemnitz in their great work added a few species. 

 Schroeter, having observed in the old plates a considerable number of 

 figures that had been overlooked, separated them carefully from each 

 other, and placed them in the genus after the Linnsean species, but 

 only distinguished them by numbers, so preparing the way for Gmelin, 

 who unscrupulously and without quoting him, contented himself 

 with putting a specific name to each of Schrceter's numbers, and bor- 

 rowing his synonyms, good and bad. 



A deep study of the two works enabled me some years ago to dis- 

 cover the unscrupulous plagiarism of Gmelin. 



Tn the work of Gmelin, the 13th edition of the ' Systema Natures,' 

 the number of species was considerably increased, for we find as 

 many as forty-three. But this number would be greatly diminished 

 if we submitted all the species to a strict examination, and we shall 

 find that, besides a number of species absolutely unascertainable, we 

 have turreted shells of Melampus, Melania, Fusus or Pleurotoma, 

 Ireton, Buccinum, Cerithium, Pyrula, Achatina, Pyramidella, and 

 Turritella. 



If from this miserable list we suppress duplicates, we shall find 

 the number of true Terehrce (whose synonymy Gmelin had talent 

 enough to make most incorrect) will exceed but little that of the 

 1 2th edition of the ' Systema Naturse.' 



Lamarck has doubled the number of the species of Linnaeus in his 

 ' Histoire Naturelle des Animaux sans Vertebres ;' but at the end of 

 the genus he places two which do not possess the generic characters, 

 and should be taken from the Terebrce and put with Buccinum, where 

 we have already placed them. 



Our travelling naturalists, from the great scientific expeditions they 

 have undertaken, have been enabled to enrich the public collections 

 with a great number of new species. Messrs. Quoy and Gaimard con- 

 tributed a few of them collected during the voyage of the 'Astrolabe.' 

 M. Kiener added some others in his ' Species generales et Icono- 

 graphie des Coquilles vivantes,' and carried up to thirty-five only 

 the number figured and described. Shortly afterwards Dr. Gray 

 described summarily in the ' Proceedings of the Zoological Society 



No. 401. — Proceedings of the Zoological Society, 



