CURRENT NOTES AND MEMORANDA. 67 



Frog {Rana fe?np07'aria), excellently cleaned and mounted on a 

 ^tout, dead-black mill-board. The various limbs, so far as is 

 practicable, are detached and arranged in natural order on the 

 board, to which they are affixed by an elastic cord, so that each 

 may be removed for individual inspection. Thus we have — 

 The upper part of the head with the vertebra, the lower jaw, the 

 two arms and hands, the sternum, the hyoid bone or cartilage, the 

 pelvic arch, and the two hind legs and posterior hands. 



In a separate box, Mr. Wilton has also sent us the head of a 

 Frog, mounted on a small, square, black card. We are much 

 pleased to receive these specimens, and think that Mr. Wilton's 

 energies are being applied in the right direction, and trust that he 

 may be well remunerated for his labours. We understand that 

 Mr. Wade-Wilton has gone so largely into his new enterprise that 

 he is now able to take orders for dozens of his various subjects on 

 very liberal terms, and that single specimens of the entire skeleton 

 may be purchased of him for 4s. 6d., or one where the whole 

 skeleton is permanently attached to the card for about 3s. 6d. 

 We suppose the head alone mounted on a card in a neat box will 

 sell for about 2s. 



The American Naturalist has just completed its 17th Vol. 

 The promises made by its editors in the January part, have been 

 very honestly carried out, and we have before us a volume of 

 some 1330 pages, carefully printed, and well illustrated. The 

 December part, which reached us a few days ago, contains several 

 articles of much interest to the Microscopist, amongst which we 

 may mention " Development of the Dandelion," " Notes on the 

 Ch(Etonotus lariis^'' an animal about 1-2 2 5th of an inch in length, 

 found in the fine debris over the bottom of ponds, streams, and 

 springs : " Experiments with the Antennae of Insects." Owing to 

 its size, the volume is divided into two parts, each supplied with 

 a valuable index. 



Mounting Minute Insects and Acari in Balsam. — Mr. A. D. 



Michael describes his process in the " Quekett Journal " as fol- 

 lows — He first kills the creature in hot water or spirit ; hard insects 

 and Acari are best killed in hot water, which causes them to 

 expand their legs, but spirit is better than water for minute flies. 

 Next wash the object thoroughly in spirit, and clean with badger 's- 

 hair brush, leave it in spirit for a time, tilt the slip to drain off the 

 spirit, but do not dry the object, which should 7iever be allowed to 

 dry from first to the final mounting. Having drained off the 

 spirit, drop on the object a little oil of cloves, slightly warm the 



