261 



A paper was read by Mr. C. Spencer Rolfe " On a new microscopical 

 turntable," which he exhibited in the room. 



The Chairman, in moving a vote of thanks to Mr. Rolfe, said that the 

 instrument before them seemed to be an extremely ingenious one, and to 

 supply a want which must have been experienced by those who had used the 

 American form of Mr. Cox, which required great care, as too much pressure 

 chipped the slides, or too little rendered them unsteady. 



Dr. Matthews said that the special reason why he devised his turntable 

 was to admit of mounting more than one specimen on the same slide, if 

 required. This was often desirable, and with a turntable which permitted 

 of end motion it was very easy. He had also, since then, devised a form of 

 turntable by which any slide which had been drawn eccentrically could be 

 put again upon the turntable to be repaired. He thought that the turntable 

 which had been shown by Mr. Rolfe displayed great ingenuity. 



Mr. Michael could not doubt the ingenuity shown in the construction of 

 this new turntable, but he could not help thinking that sometimes they paid 

 a little too much attention to centering, and that a great many very good 

 slides were spoilt by the desire to centre them. When mounting an object it 

 often happened that a slight slip of the covering glass would cause it to get 

 out of the centre, and in attempting to replace it damage was frequently 

 done; and he was quite of opinion that it was better to have the object 

 perfect, though not in the centre, than to have it imperfect and in the centre. 

 The old " Shadbolt" was, after all, equal to the requirements of those who 

 thought that the object should be the centre of the ring, and the most vain- 

 able turntable would, he thought, be that which enabled the ring to be made 

 round the object, on whatever portion of the slide it happened to be. 



Dr. Matthews said that in the new plan it was possible to have any centre 

 whatever. 



Mr. Frank Crisp exhibited a new form of turntable which Mr. Beck had 

 brought from America, and which he thought was very ingenious ; the 

 mechanical arrangement connected with the clamps seemed particularly so. 

 Mr. Ingpen said that the old plan of Mr. Hislop's, of centering by means 

 of a couple of pins, was very good. He had since made the two pins into 

 two screws with flat milled heads and leather washers ; a slight pressure 

 from which clipped the slide, whilst allowing of its being easily moved in 

 any way if excentricity was required. 



Mr. F. H. P. Hind said he had used the plan which Mr. Ingpen men- 

 tioned, and found it a very good one. 



Dr. Matthews said he had used this kind also a good deal, in fact he 

 thought he used it more than he did his own. 

 The thanks of the meeting were voted to Mr. Rolfe for his paper. 

 Mr. J. W. Groves read a paper " On Stained Sections of Animal Tissues 

 and how to make them." 



The Chairman said he need hardly ask them to return thanks to Mr. 

 Groves for his extremely valuable and exhaustive paper upon a subject in 

 which so many of them were doubtless interested, and which he would, 

 without further remark, leave in their hands for discussion. 



