29 



number of fins to some extent as a ground of classi- 

 fication. Artedi went on to make his point clear as 

 to the absurdity of such a classification by showing 

 that certain fish, such as cod, mackerel, perch etc., 

 which are closely allied to one another, have a differ- 

 ing number of fins. We may very forcibly have brought 

 home to us how far Artedi in this matter was ahead 

 of his age, if we recall to mind the fact, that more 

 than 60 years later two Germans, M. E. Bloch and J. 

 G. Schneider, who were considered at their time ex- 

 ceedingly distinguished ichthyologists, promulgated a 

 new system of classifying Fishes on the very basis re- 

 pudiated here by Artedi; they proposed as classes: — 

 "Hendecapterygii", "Decapterygii", "Enncapterygii", etc. 



Natural classes Artedi defines to be such as em- 

 brace genera possessing a natural agreement in most 

 particulars. Hence the genera should first be grouped 

 correctly and naturally among themselves and be col- 

 lected into certain "Maniples", as he calls them, after 

 which the several classes can be arranged. According 

 to Artedi Fishes form together one class, which is 

 parallel to a class of Mammals, a class of Birds, etc., 

 etc. Consequently subdivisions of these classes must 

 have some other designation than Classes; he suggests 

 Orders. 



What is known in more modern systematology as 

 a Family does not find a place in either Artedi's or 

 Linnaeus' nomenclature, though the former seems to be 

 on its track, for he doubtless means the same thing by 

 his Maniples; the following sentence in his writings 

 points still more clearly to his being aware of the need 

 for such a further division : — "Genera Piscium Naturalia 

 prius in certos quasi Manipulos conquaerenda sunt, ex 

 quibus postea Ordines Naturales sponte exsurgunt". 

 That is to say, Artedi perceived that, after the natural 

 genera of fishes have been collected into small groups 

 (his Maniples, the Families of a later date), the arrange- 

 ment of these in natural Orders would follow almost 

 as a matter of course. In his subsequent treatment of 



