280 Mr Bernard, On the Unit of Classification, etc. 



of mud or sand. While of course I do not agree that this can be 

 the only factor determining the form, I have taken the warning 

 to heart and recognize that it is safer in this matter of arrange- 

 ment to assume nothing but to adhere only to the ascertainable 

 facts. The geographical arrangement then is all that is left to us. 



So far then in such a Catalogue or Monograph we have only 

 recorded the facts, and now we come to the first line of work upon 

 these facts. This consists in making Tables. The first table 

 would be a simple list of the recorded forms, this owing to the 

 geographical component of the designations, gives at a glance the 

 distribution, and a few other important facts such as the relative 

 abundance or scarcity of the genus in certain parts of the world, 

 or at least so far as our knowledge extends up to date. 



Then should follow a series of tables none of them really much 

 more difficult to construct than the first. These would take all the 

 important structural features in succession and the forms should 

 be arranged according to each one in turn. In this way we should 

 gradually get on the track of many important truths, we should 

 for instance at once begin to see whether certain definite morpho- 

 logical features followed definite geographical lines. Indeed with 

 such a geographical chart of the genus, we should have at our 

 disposal a permanent basis on which to lay down any experi- 

 mental method of classification we like, even one suggested by 

 characters drawn from internal anatomy hitherto necessarily 

 ignored by the systematists. No new line suggested by varia- 

 tions hitherto unnoticed need be subversive as they too often are 

 now ; all good methods of comparison can only be contributory 

 to the final result. Along these lines there can be little doubt 

 but that interesting and instructive series will come to light 

 gradually of themselves, the interpretation of which will be a 

 new stimulus to research. We can now I think see how necessary 

 it is to have geographical designations, any others would multiply 

 the labour uselessly. 



This system is obviously not intended to be a rival to the 

 Linnean system of naming the genetic divisions of the organic 

 kingdom. The Linnean system stands for the names of the 

 orders, families, genera, and it will stand also for the species when 

 we know what they are. What we are suggesting is not there- 

 fore a new system of naming divisions at all, but a new technique 

 for systematic work to enable us to discover the divisions, which 

 we can then name according to the Linnean formula. The 

 present exclusive use of the Linnean system which is only 

 applicable to a final definitive classification compels us now to 

 guess blindly at what we can only discover by patient research. 



