1960 



Journal of Applied Microscopy 



serial number should be put on the cork or on a small piece of paper inside. 

 Specimens too large for the vials should have the number on the shell in ink. 

 Then, if a drawer happens to be overturned, the specimens can be sorted out 

 again without difficulty. 



When numbered, the vials and specimens should be placed in trays. For 

 these a standard size should be adopted, so that they will conveniently fit into 

 the drawers of the cabinet. In the National Museum at Washington, the unit is 

 1x2 inches, and the larger sizes are all multiples of that unit. In the Academy 

 of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia the unit is 1x3 inches. In either case a 

 convenient intermediate size is lj4 x'l or 3, as the case may be. There is one 

 advantage in the use of the larger unit where space is a serious question. For 

 the small species the vials may be made only 1 J^ inches in length, and two vials 

 can be put into one tray, thus doubling the capacity of the drawer. The trays 

 should be of the same depth. One-half inch is sufficient for most of the univalve 

 species. For the larger species and the Cnioniihr, requiring trays of good size, 

 3/j^ inch is better. These trays can be had of any paper box manufacturer, or 

 can be easily cut out of cardboard by the collector, the corners being fastened 

 together by strips of gummed paper. The character of the cases for a collection 

 is determined by the means and inclination of the collector. Any case of shal- 

 low drawers will do. If, however, cases are to be made, they should be made 

 of a standard size with interchangeable drawers. The standard drawer should 

 be one inch in depth on the outside. The length and width may be of any size, 

 provided they are always the same; 19x19 inches inside measurement is a 

 convenient size for a case with two rows of drawers. Other drawers may be 2 

 inches or 3 inches in depth, but comparatively few of the latter size will be re- 

 quired. The cases may be of any height desired, according to the number of 

 drawers needed. The method of hanging the drawers is as follows : On the 

 inside of the cases are fastened a series of horizontal cleats one inch in depth 

 and yk in width at the broad end, extending from the top to the bottom. The 

 following diagram will show the arrangement : 



