1881.] 



MICKOSCOPICAL JOUENAL. 



159 



ble for demonstrating the structure of 

 plants as the pumpkin vine. " The single 

 row of epidermal cells, the frequent sec- 

 tion-views of stomata, the typical coUen- 

 chyma and under it the cambium, and 

 then about a dozen perfectly top-shaped 

 fibro-vascular bundles, all come out so 

 clearly that even a beginner can demon- 

 strate them with but little difficulty." 



— At a recent meeting of the Societe 

 Beige de Microscopic, M. Errera stated 

 that the anilin color nigrosine was an ex- 

 cellent reagent for staining nuclei. He 

 showed some sections of vegetable tis- 

 sues, colored with this substance, in 

 which the nuclei had taken a very pro- 

 nounced blue coloration, which admirably 

 revealed the details of their structure, 

 while the rest of the cell remained un- 

 stained. The sections to be stained are 

 allowed to remain in the aqueous solution 

 of nigrosine for a short time, and are then 

 washed in water until the liquid extracts 

 no more color. They may then be mount- 

 ed in glycerin, or else passed through al- 

 cohol and mounted in balsam or dammar 

 in the usual way. 



— On the evening of June 16th, the 

 Camden Microscopical Society held a 

 public reception which was well attended, 

 and undoubtedly proved to be very enjoy- 

 able. The members of that Society 

 seem to be very active in prosecuting their 

 studies in the domain of microscopy, and 

 we have noticed that at their receptions 

 they have always had something to show 

 which was not only striking in appear- 

 ance, but also instructive. Too many of 

 our exhibitions are made up of objects 

 that are purchased, and shown by per- 

 sons who are quite unable to give an in- 

 telligible explanation of them. A little 

 more energy in study and collecting, on 

 the part of members of societies, would 

 do much to remove the very common im- 

 pression among a large class of persons, 

 that the microscope is of more value as a 

 means of amusement than for scientific 

 work. 



— The Elmira Microscopical Society 

 has published its Constitution and By- 

 Laws, with a short history of the Society, 

 extracted from the Secretary's First An- 

 nual Report, in a neat, small 16°^° pam- 

 phlet. The Society has forty-seven act- 

 ive and three honorary members, and is 

 prosperous. The method of work seems 

 to be a very good one. There are eight 

 sections, each under the charg-e of a lead- 



er, and whenever a section has anything 

 of interest to bring before the Society, the 

 President appoints an evening for the 

 consideration of that subject. There are 

 now sections on Algce, Diatomacese, His- 

 tology, Entomostraca, Entomology, Crys- 

 tallography, Cryptogamia and Rhizopoda. 



MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETIES. 



CENTRAL NEW YORK. 



A regular meeting of the above named 

 organization was held on Tuesday even- 

 ing, June 28th, at the office of Dr. Aber- 

 dein, in Syracuse, for the election of 

 officers. The following were elected : 

 President, Geo. K. CoUins, Esq. ; 1st 

 Vice-president, Alfred Mercer, M. D. ; 

 2d Vice-president, C. E. Slocum, M. D. ; 

 Treasurer, Robert A. Aberdein, M. D. ; 

 Secretary, A. L. Woodward. 



The Society then adjourned until the 

 last Tuesday evening in September. 



NOTICES OF BOOKS. 



The Botanical Collector's Handbook. By 

 W. Whitman Bailey, B. P., Olney Pro- 

 fessor of Natural History (Botany) and 

 Curator of the Herbaria in Brown Uni- 

 versity, Providence, R. I. Naturalists' 

 Handy Series No. 3. Salem, Mass. ; 

 George A. Bates. 1881. (Pp. 140. 

 Price, $1.50.) 



This is certainly a valuable book for 

 botanists, especially for those who are not 

 experienced collectors. Although we are 

 not particularly engaged in botanical 

 studies, we have read the greater part of 

 this book with considerable interest and 

 with great benefit. The information is 

 practical and it is concisely given. We 

 think the author is quite right when he 

 states that : " The want of a manual such 

 as exists in other countries, for the guid- 

 ance of botanical collectors and amateurs, 

 has long been felt in our own." In its 

 preparation he has had the assistance, or 

 advice, of such eminent men as Prof. C. 

 H. Peck, who wrote the chapter on " Col- 

 lecting and Preserving Fungi," the Rev. 

 Francis Wolle, who furnished some notes 

 on the fresh-water algse, Profs. D. C. 

 Eaton, W. H. Brewer, E. Tuckerman, 

 Mr. Charles Wright and others. The 

 book contains just the kind of information 

 that the student of botany will find most 



