﻿206 
  THE 
  VEETEBEATE 
  FAUNA 
  OF 
  "DEE." 
  

  

  it 
  with 
  a 
  faultless 
  newly 
  - 
  invented 
  one.'" 
  (The 
  Horse, 
  

   a 
  Study 
  in 
  Natural 
  History, 
  p. 
  56.) 
  Again, 
  at 
  p. 
  71 
  of 
  

   the 
  same 
  excellent 
  work, 
  he 
  says 
  : 
  " 
  Every 
  change 
  in 
  the 
  

   limit 
  of 
  a 
  genus 
  involves 
  some 
  of 
  those 
  endless 
  changes 
  in 
  

   names 
  which 
  are 
  among 
  the 
  greatest 
  causes 
  of 
  embarrass- 
  

   ment 
  in 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  Zoology 
  in 
  modern 
  times, 
  and 
  do 
  much 
  

   to 
  repel 
  beginners 
  from 
  entering 
  upon 
  it." 
  This 
  is 
  most 
  

   true, 
  and 
  not 
  less 
  applicable 
  is 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  Baiidce, 
  

   for 
  there 
  is, 
  perhaps, 
  no 
  group 
  of 
  fishes 
  that 
  has 
  undergone 
  

   more 
  changes 
  of 
  nomenclature 
  than 
  the 
  one 
  just 
  named, 
  

   except, 
  perhaps, 
  the 
  Salmonidce; 
  and 
  the 
  confusion 
  that 
  still 
  

   exists 
  is 
  almost 
  sufficient 
  to 
  deter 
  anyone 
  from 
  undertaking 
  

   the 
  labour 
  of 
  attempting 
  to 
  bring 
  the 
  matter 
  into 
  anything 
  

   like 
  understandable 
  form. 
  

  

  In 
  this, 
  as 
  in 
  other 
  Ichthyological 
  difficulties, 
  external 
  

   form 
  and 
  colour 
  have 
  been 
  looked 
  upon 
  as 
  sufficient 
  to 
  

   determine 
  specifically 
  every 
  form 
  of 
  ray 
  known 
  to 
  British 
  

   waters; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  an 
  entire 
  fallacy. 
  It 
  would 
  be 
  quite 
  as 
  

   reasonable 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  a 
  white 
  horse 
  and 
  a 
  black 
  one 
  are 
  

   different 
  species. 
  If 
  colour, 
  with 
  the 
  absence 
  or 
  presence 
  

   of 
  spines, 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  Baia 
  clavata, 
  would 
  make 
  species, 
  

   at 
  least 
  a 
  dozen 
  more 
  might 
  be 
  added 
  to 
  the 
  list 
  from 
  this 
  

   one 
  species 
  alone, 
  so 
  greatly 
  does 
  it 
  vary. 
  On 
  such 
  points 
  

   no 
  reliance 
  can 
  be 
  placed. 
  To 
  me, 
  structural 
  differences 
  

   are 
  of 
  more 
  importance 
  in 
  determining 
  species, 
  but 
  this 
  

   entails 
  an 
  amount 
  of 
  labour 
  which 
  no 
  British 
  author 
  seems 
  

   to 
  have 
  undertaken 
  or 
  even 
  thought 
  necessary; 
  and 
  the 
  

   consequence 
  has 
  been 
  that 
  whenever 
  a 
  fish 
  has 
  been 
  found 
  

   that 
  wanted 
  some 
  spine, 
  or 
  had 
  an 
  additional 
  one, 
  or 
  whose 
  

   colour 
  was 
  somewhat 
  different 
  from 
  that 
  given 
  by 
  previous 
  

   authors, 
  the 
  finder 
  at 
  once 
  rushed 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  

   here 
  is 
  a 
  new 
  British 
  species 
  — 
  till 
  now 
  quite 
  overlooked 
  — 
  

   the 
  result 
  being 
  that 
  a 
  new 
  name 
  is 
  applied, 
  perhaps 
  a 
  

   new 
  genus 
  created, 
  thus 
  making 
  chaos 
  more 
  chaotic. 
  

  

  