The Microscope. 245 



of these cover glasses in the usual way — by blowing in a furnace 

 — was forbidden by their substance." Further than this the 

 method of manufacture has not been explained. 



editor;s. 



DEPARTMENT 



^^ift 



IT frequently happens that the amateur microscopist would 

 study the epidermal cells and appendages of the almost in- 

 finite variety of leaves, the structure of the cellular parenchyma, 

 or body substance of the leaf, the peculiarities of the cells and 

 vessels of petals and of other parts of flowers. That is, he would 

 if he could. It is sometimes an easy task to strip off the epi- 

 dermis and to examine its cells, while in other cases it is almost 

 impossible. Many chemical mixtures have been recommended 

 for the purpose, and they accomplish the object after a fashion. 

 The structure of the body of the leaf may be satisfactorily studied 

 in sections, but not every microscopist can have a good micro- 

 tome : a poor one is an abomination. There is also much to be 

 learned and much beauty to be seen in the petals of flowers and 

 in the cuticle and cells of the anthers, but it has been almost 

 impossible to succeed here without special and somewhat com- 

 plicated processes. Yet there is a way to make these objects 

 either entirely transparent or sufficiently translucent to render 

 their study pleasing and comparatively easy. The dealers will 

 supply the microscopist with mounts of entire flowers made 

 beautifully transparent, but the method of accomplishing this is 

 not detailed with any spontaneity ; indeed the preparers, so far 

 as I have been able to observe, are deaf and dumb when the 

 subject is mentioned in their presence. I possess a fine slide of 

 the entire flower of the common Houstonia, or " Innocence," per- 

 fectly transparent, so that the cells of the epidermis, of the sub- 

 stance of the petals and of other parts, and the anthers with the 

 pollen grains in sitic, may all be examined with a high power. 



How the thing was accomplished I have, until recently, 

 been unable to ascertain. The secret has been so well kept that, 

 so far as I can learn, only the dealers knew it; the books 



