29 



*' Proceedings of the Manchester Literary andPhilo-) ,-, o ■ i 



sophical Society " ... ) ' ■ 



*' The American Naturalist" in exchange, 



" Journal of the London Institution " ... the Librarian. 



A 2in. Objective Mr. Kowlett. 



The thanks of the Club were unanimously voted to the donors. 



The following gentlemen were balloted for and duly elected members of the 

 Club :— Mr. Edwin Denyer, Vr. Eobert Hudson, F.E.S., Dr. J. Hamilton 

 MeKechnie, Mr. Edwin Tulley Newton, and Mr. Frederick George Hilton Price. 



The President regretted to have to announce that there was no paper to be 

 read that evening, but several gentlemen had communications to make to the 

 Club. 



Mr. James Smith made some observations explanatory of improvements to^a 

 new substage for the microscope, which he recently introduced to the notice of 

 the members. The stage, as now constructed, was exhibited and described, and 

 a vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Smith for his communication. 



Dr. Matthews said that most of the members of the Club would, no doubt, 

 recollect that he had produced a self- centring turn-table, about a year ago (May 

 27th, 1870), and exhibited it at one of the meetings. It was then pronounced to 

 be excellent, and it remained excellent for new slides, but in most cabinets there 

 occurred a necessity for revarnishiug old slides, and cells on these were not 

 always found to be central. In such cases this turn-table would only correctly 

 centre them, and thereby show their eccentricity, and its accuracy thus became 

 a defect, although it was a defect consequent upon its perfection. He had, how- 

 ever, now devised a remedy for this by dividing the top of the table into two 

 portions, so arranged, that by sliding the upper part upon the surface of the 

 lower, any required degree of eccentricity could be attained. This was accom- 

 plished very easily and simply, and he thought that the arrangement rendered 

 the turn-table as perfect as could be desired; certainly he did not himself see 

 what more could be done to it. One of the improved turn-tables was then ex- 

 hibited to the meeting, and its utility shown by centring a slide which had been 

 eccentrically mounted for the purpose. 



The President said that Dr. Matthews had exhibited a very practical arrange- 

 ment, and one which certainly rendered his ingenious turn-table as perfect as 

 could possibly be. 



Mr. T. Curties said that Mr. Aylward, of Manchester, had sent two things to 

 the meeting that evening for exhibition. One was a triple nose-piece of his own 

 construction, and which appeared to be more successfully made than many of 

 those in common use ; it centred the objectives very easily, and worked smoothly 

 and well. The other was a contrivance devised for the purpose of getting objects 

 out of reach. It consisted of a pair of forceps and a cutter, arranged so as to be 

 fixed at the end of a stick, and having two strings attached, one of which, on 

 being pulled, closed the forceps, and thus held the object last, whilst the other 

 worked the cutter and severed it. 



The President proposed votes of thanks to those gentlemen who had favoured 

 the meeting with their communications, and also called attention to the 2in. 

 objective which had that evening been presented to the Club by Mr Rowlett, for 

 use with the tank microscope which belonged to them. This power was of ex- 

 cellent quality, and was one of Mr. liowlett's own manufacture. 



The Secretary anr.ounced that it had been decided to hold the annual soiree 

 of the club on the 15th of March, and it was further intimated that the Com- 

 mittee had decided that members who had not paid their subscriptions ought 



