30 
which are thus made genotypes contrary to the general use (e. g. 
Echinocyamus ), it cannot be wondered that the “Nomenclature rais- 
onnée” has the appearance of becoming quite unreasonable. It is 
a pity that the two eminent specialists in fossil Echinoids should 
thus destroy for a great part the value of their work, which other- 
wise, when carried out after their plan of enumerating all the fossil 
species known, promises to be of very great value. As for the 
classification and nomenclature of the recent Echinoids carried out 
after the principle they announce it will probably be necessary 
simply to ignore it; but its existence in literature is exceedingly 
to be regretted, to use a very mild expression. 
A few remarks may be added in regard to the sentence quoted: 
U I1 est aujourd’hui de mode de ne plus caractériser la classification 
que sur les differences tres relatives qui existent entre ces organes 
microscopiques”, siuce this is evidently meant to have a beaiing 
especially on the work of the present author, and also on that of 
Professor Doderlein. That it is decidedly unjust to denounce 
our classifications as being based alone on the microscopical cha- 
racters (pedicellariæ and spicules) everybody must agree who 
will take the trouble to study, without preconceived judgment, the 
works in which these classifications are set forth (the present 
author’s work on the “Ingolf” Echinoidea, the Siam-Echinoidea and 
“Die Echinoiden der deuschen Stidpolar Expedition”, Prof. Doder- 
lein’s work on “Die Echinoiden der deutschen Tiefsee-Expedition”). 
I do not wish to discuss the matter here again, and I shall merely 
repeat that ray only principle of classification is, — and I do not 
doubt that Professors Agas si z, Doderlein, Koeliler, H. Lyman 
Clark and de Meijere, to name only some of the more prominent 
authors on the classification of recent Echini, will agree with me, 
_ that all characters should be taken into consideration in the 
classification, the meaning and scope of which is to represent the 
natural affinities of the different forms, recent and fossil; and what 
is found from a thorougli comparative study of the recent forms to 
be of value as affording valuable distinctive characters should be 
