1893.] MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 323 



precede the stage of ripe spore, can be stained. — British Medical 

 Journal ii, 1893, Epitome of Current Medical Literature, p. 25, 



To Pack Slides for Mailing. — The most economical and a 

 perfectly satisfactory method is illustrated by a package just re- 

 ceived from the Microscopist, E. W. Sharp. 



Take pieces of wood one inch wide and three inches long (the 

 exact size of a slide). The wood may be from i to i inch thick- 

 Paste upon each end of one side of these pieces of wood a piece 

 of cloth one inch square. The cloth better be thick. It must 

 be thicker than the cells of the slides which are to be packed. 



With these pieces at hand, one hardly need be told how to 

 use them. The first piece of wood is laid down cloth side up. 

 A slide with its cell down is laid upon it. Another slide is laid 

 upon the first back to back. A piece of wood with cloth side 

 down goes next and the package can then be wrapped and mailed 

 just as if it were a solid mass of wood, A piece of blotting paper 

 inserted between the slides will prevent scratching but is not 

 essential. 



A New Method of Staining Neuroglia. — Kultschitzky 

 (Anat. Anzeiger, April 8th, 1893), has successfully employed 

 rubin (" patent saures Rubin ") in staining neurolgia. Portions 

 of brain are fixed in the following mixture : a saturated solution 

 of potassium bichromate and sulphate of copper in 50 per cent. 

 alcohol, to which is added acetic acid in the proportion of 1 per 

 cent. The solution is made in the dark, about twenty-four 

 hours being required. The time employed in fixation depends 

 upon the size of the object, and varies from twenty-four hours to 

 two or three months. Fixation is carried out in the dark 

 Transfer the object to strong alcohol, withoutpreliminary wash- 

 ing; here it hardens. When sufficiently hard pass through par- 

 affin. Sections, freed from paraffin, are placed in the following 

 stain : acetic acid sol. 2 per cent., 100 c. cm., rubin 0.25g., sat. 

 aq. sol. picric acid 100c. cm. The picric acid remains in the 

 nerve elements, and so affords a contrast to the neurolgia. The 

 stain acts very energetically, a few seconds in it being sufficient. 

 Wash in 95 per cent, alcohol, changed once. Excess of stain 

 being thus removed, transfer to absolute alcohol, clear, mount 

 as usual. The cells and fibres of the neurolgia are stained red- 

 dish-violet. Other elements are but slightly stained. If, how- 

 ever, the dye is used for more than a very brief time, nerve cells 



