178 



HARDWICKE'S SCIEN CE-GO S S IP. 



mahogany. Cut two other wedges of the same 

 angle, but rather longer, k in- thick, and attach one 

 to each side of the wedge, which is to be stationary, 

 so as to form a groove to steady the loose wedge. 

 This grooved wedge fix to a deal board (D), 

 15 X 34 by screws (S). Now comes the block (B) 

 of beech or mahogany, 2S x 3 x IJ. Through the 

 centre of its longest axis drill a hole to receive the 

 tube (T). Below the tube, and through its shortest 

 axis, sufficient of the block is to be cut away as 

 will span the fixed wedge. The block is firmly 

 fixed by long and stout screws to the board D, in 

 the position shown in the figure. The tube T is 

 now inserted in the hole, and the brass plate (which 

 I omitted to say should be perfectly flat and 

 smooth) is screwed or pinned down to the block. 

 On the face of the lower wedge gum a piece of 

 paper, with lines ruled on it about 3^0 of an inch 

 apart, and the machine is complete. 



The best cutting instrument, in my humble 

 opinion, is a razor. A small one, made of " good 

 stuff," should be selected. If the blade is fixed in 

 a small bradawl handle, it will; be more convenient 

 to use. As it is perfectly useless attempting to 

 excel in section-cutting with a tool that will not 

 stand the usual test of cutting a hair, the reader, if 

 he be not endowed with the accomplishment of 

 razor -sharpening, had better make friends with 

 some one who really is, and take a practical lesson 

 or two. 



Supposing the reader wish to try his 'prentice 

 hand upon a wood stem (transversely), this is the 

 way to proceed : — Get a cork and trim up so as to 

 fit the tube rather tightly ; with a cork-cutter make 

 a hole through it in the position shown at a, in 

 fig. 116, which should be the least trifle less in dia- 

 meter than that of the stem. Next divide the cork 

 lengthwise at b, taking care to escape the hole. 

 Cut out the shaded portion (C), which is to be re- 

 placed by an exact counterpart of deal. Cut off an 

 inch of the stem and place in the hole (a) ; put the 

 pieces of cork and deal in their places, and push all 

 gradually down the tube, with C towards the 

 operator, the plug (p) resting on the thin end of 

 the loose wedge. Have at hand a glass vessel of 

 methylated spirit, and all is ready for work. Tap 

 the wedge with the back of the razor till the stem 

 just appears above the plate ; then dip the razor in 

 the spirit and take off a slice, cutting no^further 

 into the deal than is necessary. Cut off a few more 

 slices, till you begin to feel used to it ; then strop 

 the razor' afresh and see how thin and perfect a 

 section is to be obtained, making use of the ruled 

 lines as a guide for the distance the wedge has to 

 be forced. An herbaceous stem will not require 

 tlie cork and deal packing. Strips of the same stem 

 will answer better, care being taken to pack firmly 

 without crushing. Leaves will generally be placed 

 between the two halves of a cork cut lengthwise ; 



while seeds and other small things, such as unripe 

 moss capsules, are best held in a mixture of wax 

 and spermaceti. This is the mod/is operandi : Pour 

 into the tube, in a molten state, a mixture of about 

 equal parts bees-wax and spermaceti, and just 

 before it solidifies place the seed in the mixture, in 

 the desired position. When quite cold, the wax 

 will fit the tube loosely: a thin splinter of deal 

 forced down the tube will make it firm. This is 

 also one of the best plans for vertical sections of 

 stems. 



Some recommend cutting towards, and others 

 away from, the operator. I prefer tlie former 

 method. Keep the razor well wetted ; hold it firm 

 and cut steadily, using plenty of the edge. The 

 sections will generally stick to the razor, and can 

 be shaken off into the spirit as fast as they are cut, 

 thus keeping the razor constantly wet with the 

 least amount of trouble. No rule can be given as to 

 the thickness the sections ought to be cut ; it de- 

 pends upon the size of the cells to be brought into 

 view. The smaller the cells the thinner the section, 

 and vice versa. A good transverse section should 

 show the pith, wood, and bark all tlie way through, 

 without a flaw. Wood stems should be gathered 

 in the autumn, and placed immediately into spirit. 

 They are never scarcely so good if allowed to dry. 

 A good plan for identifying the stems after they 

 have been soaked, is to cut on one end a Roman 

 mimeral, against which in a book the name is 

 placed. Without some precaution of the sort, it 

 may be rather embarrassing to a beginner to know 

 which is which, out of a bottleful of stems that have 

 lain by for some time. 



Herbaceous stems should be cut as fresh as 

 possible, and the sections allowed to remain iu 

 spirit a day or two, to empty the cells of chloro- 

 phyl, after which they sliould be well washed iu 

 clean water. Seeds are in the best condition for 

 cutting just as they are ripening. 



I have but little to say about the mounting. For 

 transparent slides, perhaps there is no better plan 

 of mounting the wood and seed sections than iu 

 balsam or damar. Some of the transverse wood 

 sections, — for example. Clematis and young stem of 

 Dog-rose, when mounted dry and revived \)y re- 

 flected light, are exceedingly beautiful, especially if 

 a bright blue ground be used. Sections of her- 

 baceous stems and the softer tissues of vegetables 

 show best in fluid. To some of the thousands of 

 ardent lovers of Nature, subscribers to Science- 

 Gossip, I would fain believe my simple section- 

 machine will be welcome. Every botanist now has 

 a microscope; yet how few, amongst their collection 

 of slides, can show a dozen good sections of their 

 own preparing, illustrative of the physiology of the 

 plants they take such pains to collect, dry, and 

 classify. In their case, a little practice at section- 

 cutting would throw open new sources of pleasure. 



