BY C. J. POUND. Vll 



taken as typical examples : — ('/) Will you show us all the snakes 

 and insects in a drop of our tank-water ? {b) If I catch a beetle 

 I suppose you will show it to us under your microscope "? I 

 reckon it looks like one of those devils that eats our peaches. 

 You know what I mean — tlying-foxes. (c) I suppose a mosquito 

 would be as large as a goanna under your microscope ? and so on. 

 It is a very remarkable fact that what held good fifty (50) years 

 ago in regard to the popular idea of the nature of the microscope 

 practically speaking holds good at the present time. In the year 

 1847 the late Dr. C. R. Goring, in an essay on the microscope, 

 remarks that " The great mass of mankind will almost invariably 

 be more delighted by an exhibition where they can see the whole 

 object at once, though only moderately magnified, than by a 

 display with a perfect high-iiower instrument, which shows only 

 small detached parts prodigiously amplified. Occasionally I meet 

 with people who are so unreasonalde as to expect that opticians 

 ought to make a microscope which would exhibit the whole of a 

 laughing-jackass or a bullock niagnilied at least a million times, 

 not being aware, I suppose, that the more we magnify any object 

 the less we must be content to see of it, according to the law of 

 nature and optics, whatever may be the construction of the glasses 

 we employ. " Once," says Dr. Goring, who by the way was a 

 most humorous microscopist, " I met with a virtuoso in Hyde 

 Park who seemed to have effected a sort of approximation in his 

 own way as to the kind of microscope the general public wanted, 

 and was making a considerably handsome collection of half- 

 pence upon the strength of it. He was exhibiting a variety of 

 large objects with a compound microscope of the old fashion, 

 which might perhaps magnify six times, and requesting the 

 observers to look through the instrument (which was placed 

 horizontally) with one eye, while they viewed Apsley House 

 (which was three-cjuarters of a mile oflf) Avith the other, in order 

 that that they might form an idea' of the stupendous powers of 

 the splendid microscope submitted' to their examination for one 

 half-pennv. 'Ladies and gen'lmun, just clap your hies to this 

 ere vonderful and most stupendous hinsterment, it magnifies 

 nearly one million of times or I'm a liar, and any of you may 

 be keuAvicted of the truth of wliat I says by looking at the 

 diamond-beedle with one hi, w]iile yoix sees x\spley House with 



