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NEW BOOKS, WITH SHORT NOTICES. 
Practical Hints on the Selection and TJse of the Microscope. Intended 
for beginners. By John Pliin, New York, U.S.A. The Industrial 
Publication Company, 1875. — The author of this little book, Mr. Phin, 
states that he has endeavoured to put together some remarks that may 
be useful solely for the beginner. He does not ambition anything 
higher than this, and we must certainly admire his modesty. We have 
gone carefully through the work, and we are glad to be able to say that 
in all respects it is a book which may be read by the junior student with 
pleasure and advantage. Almost the only fault we have to find with it 
is its very imperfect illustration. Indeed we might almost say its 
entire absence of illustration, for the few cuts widely scattered through 
its pages are out of all proportion to the wants of the reader. This is 
a serious disadvantage, and we trust it will be avoided in the next 
edition which this little book is sure to pass through. We must take 
exception to some of the author’s observations on lenses. In the first 
place, it is exceedingly objectionable to divide all objectives into 
English and French varieties. His principle of classification is too 
old and exceptional. However, we quite agree with him in his remarks 
on the subject of naming lenses. The English mode is unquestionably 
the best, and the system of Hartnack and other foreign makers, of 
numbering them 1, 2, 3, and so forth, is most inconvenient, and 
the more so inasmuch as all Continental makers differ more or less 
from each other in numbering the object-glasses. The division he 
should have adopted is that of immersion and dry objectives. We 
must likewise call his attention to the observations on immersion 
lenses, which contain several misstatements in regard to their optical 
qualities. We observe also that some of our more recent and withal 
popular additions to microscopic apparatus are omitted. But on the 
whole we must give Mr. Phin very high praise for his excellent 
addition to our rudimentary works on the subject of the microscope. 
Outlines of Practical Histology. Being Notes of the Histological 
Section of the Class of Practical Physiology held in the University of 
Edinburgh. By W. Rutherford, M.D., F.R.S.E., Professor of Physiology 
in the University of Edinburgh. London: Churchill, 1875. — While 
we are very glad to have such a book as the present one, and while it 
will save those of us who have classes an immense deal of trouble, still 
we cannot but utter our dissatisfaction with the general character of the 
volume, and we hope to see it altered if it should go through another 
edition. In the first place we must say that the author has been 
careful to admit every subject which the ordinary medical student — 
for it is for the medical student alone — requires. He gives him ample 
advice as to what animal is to be killed for the tissue to be obtained 
from ; then he tells him what he is to mount it in, and how he is to 
look at it. But then, unfortunately, he has given no illustrations 
whatever of the tissues — a circumstance that we consider extremely 
unwise. Then, again, he has used Hartnack’s glasses alone, and the 
