1896.] Editor’: Table. 651 
EDITOR’S TABLE, 
The Zoological Section of the American Association for the Advance- 
ment of Science at its meeting in Springfield, Mass. in August, 1895, 
adopted a series of resolutions which are printed in the volume of the 
Proceedings recently issued (p. 159) and which are here reproduced. 
They were adopted with but one pertinent objection from a distin- 
guished member of the section. This objection was that the method of 
determining priority of publication recommended in the resolutions was 
applicable to questions of nomenclature only, which was regarded as 
an object of a value secondary to the determination of date of discovery 
of matters of fact. While the fixing of date of the latter was admitted 
to be of great importance, it was contended by the friends of the resolu- 
tions, that the manner proposed by them was applicable to all possible 
cases, and that in fact the resolutions prescribed the best method of 
determination of priority. The mode proposed was stated to be in 
accord with that customary among authors and publishers generally, 
and that special groups of authors could not in practice sustain rules 
different from them. The resolutions are as follows. 
Whereas: The date of publication is a question of fact to be deter- 
mined by examination, and not by an arbitrary ruling: and 
Whereas: In the world at large the date of publication of books is 
the date at which they are printed; and 
Whereas : The adoption of any other date of publication would have 
no practical effect for this reason, and for the following additional 
reasons; viz. 
First; the majority of publications are not distributed, but are sold ; 
Second ; the distribution when it occurs may be rendered ineffective 
by accidents such as loss of mails, fires, et 
Third ; distribution by individuals m Ag delayed or prevented by 
absence from home, sickness or dea 
Fourth ; distribution governments of their publications is often 
delayed for routine reason 
Fifth ; the actual date of amilini will be often impossible to ascertain 
with precision, owing to lack of record and irregularity in the. period 
of transmission ; an 
Whereas : The determination of the date of printing will generally 
depend on the records of the printing office and the testimony of several 
persons, while the time of mailing will be known generally to but one 
person ; 
