1048 The American Naturalist. [November, 
position to recognize pretenders to scientific. research who do 
not fulfil the requirements of the second of the ends above 
mentioned, which a healthy nomenclature has in view. It 
is in this democratic country that this danger has arisen, in the 
adoption by some naturalists of the opinion that names are to be 
adopted which represent nothing, and which should therefore never 
be regarded as a part of scientific literature. The result to sci- 
ence is quite the same as that produced by the autocratic prac- 
tices of official scientists of a half century ago, viz., the encour- 
agement of pretence and the discouragement of work. The only 
difference is that all kinds of shams are recognized, and not only 
official shams. We have here an illustration of the close affinity 
between mobocracy and aristocracy. Indeed,they may harmonize 
perfectly under the system referred to. We are reminded of the 
song in Madame Angot's Daughter: 
Jadis les rois une race proscrite 
Enrichissait leurs partisans 
Ils avaient mainte favorites 
Et cent mille courtezans. 
* * * * 
Mais Barras est roi et Lange est sa reine, 
Il n'ait pas la peine, il n'ait pas la paine, 
Il n'ait pas la paine assurement 
Changer le gouvernement! 
It was indeed scarcely worth while to adopt rules if we 
were to be transferred from official monopolists to lexicographers 
and catalogues of gardeners and dealers in butterflies, bird-skins, 
and shells! 
The rules for the correct construction of scientific names are 
based on ordinary classical orthography, which needs only to be 
known to be followed. Yet this is often ignored, not only in 
America but in Europe, in the most glaring manner. Thus, hy- 
brid names have been repeatedly constructed, such as Venustodus | 
and latirhinus, and they cannot be set aside if put forth as the 
expression of good scientific work, Classical accomplishment is 
not of course science, but it is a pity to have scientific literature 
defaced by such exhibitions of ignorance. The fact that such 
