90 Proceedings of the Royal Societjj of Victoria. 



8lip over an open jar containing a little chloroform, the 

 animal contracts to its normal resting condition and is 

 rapidly stupefied. Then quickly plunge the stupefied worm 

 into strong spii-it, taking care not to let the surface of the 

 body adhere to the lifter. The animal is thus killed and 

 hardened wliile under the influence of chloroform and the 

 proboscis is not evei-ted at all nor does the body break up, 

 but the worm retains when dead the normal resting position. 

 In making use of this method it is important to leave 

 the worm in the chloroform vapour for neither too short nor 

 too long a time ; if the former, it regains its activity in the 

 spirit and everts the proboscis ; if the latter, it dies and 

 adheres to the lifter or glass slip on which it lies. 



This last I find to be by for the most satisfactory way of 

 killing and pi-eserving s]:»ecimens, and it is the only method 

 known to me by which tlie proboscis can be retained within 

 the body in its natural position. Of course other hardening 

 fluids besides alcohol may be used after stupefying with 

 chloroform vapour. 



Frequently, however, it is very desirable to preserve 

 specimens with the proboscis everted, and for this purpose I 

 recommend methods a. and c. 



My researches on the minute anatomy of Geonernertes 

 wei'e conducted chiefly by means of sections taken in three 

 planes (horizontal, sagittal and transverse), stained with 

 borax carmine or Kleinenberg's hpematoxylin, and cut by 

 the ordinary parafliu method. Both methods of staining 

 should l)e employed, as the results obtained are very 

 diflierent in the two cases ; hfematoxylin, for example, brings 

 out with wonderful distinctness the network of excretory 

 tubules, which I failed to recognise in the specimens stained 

 with l)orax cai'mine. 



4. Minute Anatomy. 



a. Epidermis and Suh-Epidei'mic Tissues. 



The epidermis and subjacent tissues may be studied 

 very satisfactorily in sections stained with borax carmine ; 

 hfematoxylin I have found very unsatisfactory for this 

 ]^urpose. 



The appearance of the epidermis in sections varies a good 

 deal with the state of conti-action of the particular })art of 

 the body which it covers. Frequently it is thrown into 

 slight folds and sometimes it is so stretched that it becomes 



