84 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [Mar., 



out. It was marvelous, and at the meeting of the old 

 American Microscopical Society, which was named, not 

 by me but by others " of the city of New York " as if 

 that was necessary. I named it the American Microscop- 

 ical Society when there was only one other Microscopical 

 Society in existence, the Royal as it was afterwards called, 

 of London. I say my friend Mr. George Wale brought 

 out the iron stand for the Shadboldt's turn-table, and 

 many wonderful contrivances he invented there. Wit- 

 ness the microscope stand with an entirely new form of 

 limb, which is figured and described in the seventh edi- 

 tion of Dallinger's Carpenter on the Microscope. The 

 slide is placed on the turn-table and centred. Then it is 

 turned around slowly by means on the forefinger of the 

 left hand whilst the brush, (I use a very small brush), 

 with cement in it is brought down in the right hand to 

 form a ring of cement. This must not be too thick at 

 first but allowed to dry thoroughly. Next day when it 

 is dry, (it will dry quicker in summer than in winter), 

 another coat is put on and three coats are enough unless 

 a thick cell is wanted, when another cement bearing a 

 solid in it, as white zinc or umber or something else like 

 that is used. 



When the cell is thoroughly dry, and generally this 

 takes a week at the shortest even in summer, the slide is 

 put on the turn-table and a thin layer of gold-size is put 

 upon it. Now the object, the diatom, alga, or animal 

 specimen, is put in the cell, the watery preservative put 

 in and the cover, held with a fine forceps, lowered one 

 side at a time, so as to sweep a wave of preservative be- 

 fore it, into place. The edge of the cover is wet with 

 the new gold-size and the cover itself pressed down into 

 place. The extra preservative washes out and is ab- 

 sorbed with an old handkerchief used lightly. When the 

 cover, cell, and slide is quite dry, a ring of gold-size is 

 now put upon it and it is set aside to dry. Two or three 



