324 THE ORCHID REVIEW. [NOVEMBER, IQII- 
answer to the question whether the generic name should be written in a 
single word or in two words united by a hyphen, the reply is, ‘“‘ The hyphen 
should be omitted.” 
These replies afford an ample vindication of the position that we have 
taken in the past, but we are little surprised to read the following :— 
** NoTeE.—None of the foregoing rules and recommendations should be 
retrospective in their action where their application would require a change 
in an existing name, for such application would be likely to interfere greatly 
with commerce and with garden nomenclature of all kinds, and produce 
confusion worse confounded. This does not, however, preclude the 
application of the principle of priority, and the resultant sinking of many 
names as synonymous.” 
But how, we would ask, are we to get rid of an objectionable name, 
except by changing it? As a matter of fact in the Orchid Stud-Book we 
changed the name Cattleya Mademoiselle Marie Henriette de Wavrin into 
C. Wavriniz, on the ground that it was not in accordance with rule, and we 
fail to see how we have made confusion worse confounded by the change— 
quite the reverse. We wish that all other sources of confusion could be 
eliminated as easily. 
We shall hope to see these rules and regulations carried into practice 
in the future. Some, indeed, are already adopted in the Report of the 
Orchid Committee, but the use of the hyphen is not altogether eliminated, 
and we notice the use of the generic name Sophroleliocattleya, though the 
Rules expressly state that, as an exception to the new rule for the 
nomenclature of multigeneric hybrids, ‘‘ the names of the trigeneric hybrids 
Brassccattlelia and Sophrocattlelia, already in use, are retained.” We 
omit the second t, in accordance with the original spelling. 
We take this opportnnity of correcting a mistake which appears in one 
of the questions cited above. The Orchid Stud-Book does not translate into 
Latin ail specific names expressed in other languages. It adopts both 
classical and personal names, without request to language, if they have the 
necessary quality of being limited to a single word (See ‘reply ” above). 
It adopts the simple rule :-— 
“Hybrids between species should receive specific names, Latin or 
classical, consisting of a single word—the use, however, of two short words 
being permissible where they can be connected with a hyphen. Short 
names should be used for preference, those exceeding six syllables being 
considered inadmissible.” 
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