ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICEOSCOPY, ETC. 615 



For the cytology of these fleshy Discomycetes the strong Flemming's 

 solution and Bouin's picroformalin and alcohol (picric acid 1, acetic 

 acid 10, formalin 20, alcohol [70 p.c] 70) were used, but the latter gave 

 the best results. In this fixative the material was immersed for 24-48 

 hours, and then, after washing, was passed through up-graded alcohols 

 to xylol or cedar oil preparatory to paraffin. The melting point of the 

 paraffin was 42° and the temperature of the first bath 45°. In the 

 second bath the melting point was 58° and the temperature 62°. 



Sections 3-7 /* thick were made with a Minot microtome, and were 

 freed from paraffin by immersing them in a bath of turpentine oil for 

 24 hours ; the latter was got rid of with alcohol, and then the sections 

 were hydrated in down-graded alcohols preparatory to staining. 



The stains used were iron-hasmatoxylin, magenta-red, diamond - 

 fuchsin, polychrome-blue. 



The magenta-red procedure is as follows : After washing in water 

 the sections are immersed for 10-20 minutes in 1 p.c. magenta-red in 

 anilin water. After washing again they are stained for 3-5 minutes 

 with picro-indigo carmin (0 - 5 grm. indigo carmin in 100 c.cm. of 

 saturated aqueous picric acid solution). After a short wash in water 

 the sections are differentiated and dehydrated with absolute alcohol, 

 followed by oil of cloves, xylol, balsam. 



Influence of Fixation on the Volume of Organs.* — Helene Stoltzner 

 comes to the following conclusions. The fixatives in ordinary use have 

 a greater or less effect on the volume of the organs. This effect varies 

 with the organs ; thus picric acid causes shrinkage of the liver, but 

 increases the bulk of kidney, spleen, and brain. Some other and as yet 

 unknown factors than the concentration of the fixative solution play an 

 important part in the change of bulk of the material. In 4 • 5 p.c. ca ne 

 sugar solution saturated with sublimate is found an isotonic fixative 

 for warm-blooded animals, which leaves the volume of the organs 

 unchanged. 



Studying Spermatogenesis of the Earthworm. f — P. Depdolla, 

 after trying several of the ordinary fixatives, finally adopted Benda's 

 acetic acid chrom-osmic acid mixture. During the first half of the in- 

 vestigation the preparations were stained with iron-hasroatoxylin. The 

 author then tried gentian-violet, and finally settled down to Benda's 

 mitochondria stain, sulphalizarinate of sodium, and crystal-violet with 

 iron mordant. 



Studying the Segmentation of Siphostoma floridae.J — Eug. W. 

 Gudger obtained male pipe-fishes, opened the pouch, removed some eggs, 

 and examined them under the Microscope. If they were in a stage 

 wanted, the head of the fish was cut off and the eggs removed from the 

 pouch. The best killing fluids were found to be Perenyi's 10 p.c. and 

 20 p.c. formalin, Gilson's and Worcester's fluids. This last consists of 

 saturated sublimate in 10 p.c. formalin 90 parts, glacial acetic acid 



* Zeitschr. wiss. Mikrosk., xxiii. (1906) pp. 14-25. 



t Zeitschr. wiss. Zool., lxxxi. (1906) pp. 632-90 (1 pi.). 



+ Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus., xxix. (1906) pp. 447-500 (7 pis.). 



