77 



obviously founded on principles of common sense and justice. 

 Among these are, 



1. Simple indications of species, merely to secure priority, 

 should not be countenanced, although the specific name, if not 

 otherwise objectionable, must be adopted. 



2. As manuscript descriptions cannot be quoted, so the simple 

 labelling of a specimen cannot be considered in the light of a 

 prior claim. Yet courtesy requires that the original discoverer 

 should be duly notified before publishing the species. 



3. The claim of the original describer of a species is never lost, 

 no matter through how many genera it may be successively trans- 

 ported. 



4. Specific descriptions founded on single specimens are to be 

 avoided as much as possible, and no description should be consi- 

 dered as complete and authentic, unless accompanied by figures, 

 or what is preferable, a reference made to some collection in which 

 the specimen is deposited. 



5. No specific name should be noticed when the author has not 

 himself seen the plant, animal, &c. but has drawn up his descrip- 

 tion from the relations of travellers. 



6. Ignorance of the common systems, descriptions of species un- 

 der two or more different names, the forming of new species from 

 mere varieties of established and well known species, destroy all 

 confidence in the authority of the describer, and of course render 

 it unnecessary to quote his names or his descriptions, &;c. &;c. 



These, and others of a similar character, although they may 

 seem apparently unimportant in themselves, yet their due obser- 

 vance will tend materially to soften that exacerbation of feeling 

 which should be confined to the political arena. 



Note h—Page 67. 



Unremitting efforts are made by modern naturalists to distri- 

 bute the animal kingdom into groupes or families, allied by ad- 

 ventitious, and often highly artificial characters, derived from 



