E. Billings—“Note on a Question of Priority.” 399 
Art. XLVIL—Rejoinder to Prof. Hall's Reply toa “ Note on a 
question of Priority” ; by EH. Bruuines. 
With regard to publication, I hold it to be the duty of at 
author who describes new fossils to make his work accessible 
to the public. If he fail to do this, he cannot claim priority 
over one who has published in the regular way. His work 
may be adopted as a matter of courtesy, but not to take 
precedence over fair publication. Prof. Hall’s pamphlet was 
not accessible to the public at the time my paper was published, 
and therefore his genus Rhynobolus cannot take priority over 
my genus Obole/lina. During the discussion that has taken 
Place it has been argued, with reference to publication, that 
‘no determined rules or laws have been hitherto settled or 
followed.” On this point, I hold that there are laws which 
hot instituted by legislative enactment, and although they may 
be habitually transgressed by any number of unscrupulous 
persons. The law of publication is one of these. Every true 
haturalist instinctively feels and knows that such a law does 
ork fossils for comparison, 
and for that purpose have bought them, collected them myself, 
and sent others to collect them for me. But I only use them 
for comparison. I never described a new species collected in 
New York. On the other hand, Prof. Hall collects Canadian 
fossils, and goes further. He describes the new species. He 
