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154 The Mickoscope. 



Elleaberger has found that a great part of the sugar formed 

 from oats in the stomach of horses is due to the action of bacteria 

 contained in the food. Neither the saliva nor the gastric juice can 

 account for the quick formation of sugar from starch to such an ex- 

 tent. — Western Druggist. 



Dr. Tschirch recommends the addition of lead or barium 

 compounds to the alcohol used in preserving plants as an efficient 

 method of retaining the original colors. — Botan. Gazette. 



Mr. H. N. Ridley, assistant to the British Museum, is going to 

 visit Fernando Noronha, the beautiful island off the Brazilian coast. 

 The Braziliah government has granted him permission to make 

 botanical and zoological collections on the island, though generally 

 visits of strangers are prohibited on account of a colony of convicts 

 being established there. — Science. 



The Medical News says that corks may be rendered perfectly 

 ether-tight by coating them with a solution consisting of four parts 

 gelatin, fifty-two parts boiling water, and one part ammonium 

 bichromate, which should be added to the filtered gelatin solution. 

 After coating, expose the cork for several days of sunlight. 



Dr. Bessey calls attention to the fact that the roughness of 

 certain uredospores can only l^e seen when mounted dry. His 

 attention was called to the fact by a student's difficulty in seeing the 

 prickly wall of the uredospores of Puccima coronata when mounted 

 in water. When mounted dry the prickles appeared with great 

 distinctness. — Bot. Gazette. 



By mixing acetate of lead and iodide of potassium on a slide, 

 interesting and beautiful crystals may be observed growing under 

 the microscope. 



The colonies of Australia and the neighboring islands have 

 some twenty scientific societies, with a membership of between 2,500 

 and 3,000. These organizations are to meet in 1888 for the purpose 

 of forming an Australian association for the advancement of science, 

 similar to the important associations now existing in England, 

 France and the United States. — Siviss Cr^oss. 



The outer coat of the bulb of Gladiolus contains some good 

 examples of long crystal prisms ; these show well with the polari- 

 scope. Leaves of Lemna trisulca contain true raphides; some are 

 found in cells, and some in intercellular spaces. Large intercellular 

 spaces, containing air, may be seen in the centre of these leaves 

 which enables the leaves to float on the top of the water. — Journal 

 of Microscopy. 



