1889.] MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 33 



The epidermis, hair-shaft, inner root-sheath, and all nuclei stain yel- 

 low ; the. rete Malpighi. outer root-sheath, sweat glands, sebaceous 

 glands, the nuclei of cells and smooth muscle stain green ; nuclei of con- 

 nective tissue, elastic fibres, lobes of the sebaceous glands with the nu- 

 clei of their cells, membrane of fat cells, stain red ; cartilage and the 

 nuclei of its cells stain violet. 



Report upon the Postal Clul) Boxes— III. 



By QLTEEN MAB. 

 ( Continued from page S.) 



Box W". — No. 3 contains crystals of sulphur by Prof. C. H. Kain. 



No. 4 is by E. E. Read. Jr. .Camden, N. J., and contains the trans- 

 verse section of a seed of Collomia. It was cut with a common razor 

 while held between the thumb and finger, mounted in balsam, and 

 ringed with Brunswick black, which is unfortunately showing its 

 fallibility by • running in.' Objectives recommended ; i" for cell struc- 

 ture, and i to 1^ for protoplasm. 



No. 5 is a section of Nelumbium Iiiteum. mounted in balsam, and 

 is by A. P. Brown, of Camden. To a querist asking whether there is 

 any probable difference in the chemical composition of those portions 

 which stain with carmine and those taking iodine green. Rev. A. B. 

 Hervey replies : — 'Some of the cell-walls colored green in this specimen 

 are those which are usually lignified. viz., those of the vessels and 

 sheath of the vascular bundles. The presence of lignin in these cut 

 walls could easily be detected by the use of proper re-agents, as set 

 forth on page 330 of the translation of Dr. Behren's -Guide to the 

 Microscopical Investigation of Vegetable Substances.' 



Slide No. 6 is a desmid. by John M. Betts, of Camden, and though 

 a difficult object to preserve, retains its form perfectly, having been 

 mounted in weak camphor water for over two years. 



The irregular arrival of boxes in January emphasizes anew the im- 

 portance of each member strictly conforming to the rules by forwarding 

 boxes at the expiration of the three days during which each is entitled 

 to keep them. Onlv thus can the greatest efficiency be attained. A 

 new departure has "been instituted this year by circulating a larger 

 number of the Cole Studies, and calling for fewer contributions from 

 the circuits, thus raising the standard of the preparations circulated. 

 There is one serious drawback to the enjoyment of the Cole Studies as 

 now circulated. A pamphlet of text and box of slides enclosed in a 

 pasteboard roll being unable to withstand the rough usage encountered 

 in the mails, it has become necessary to have the boxes enclosed in tin 

 and leather cases, while the pages of the text have been cut in halves 

 to fit a letter envelope. This prevents consecutive paging of the re- 

 modeled text, and to some wdiose time is too valuable to be applied to 

 the solution it constitutes a serious annoyance. Probably the present 

 form is the least of two evils, but it is to be hoped that Mr. Cole 

 will consider this defect. His studies are otherwise incomparable and 

 present excellent examples of that happy medium — a popular style with- 

 out sacrifice of scientific accuracy — while many of the slides are ideal 

 preparations. 



Box be. — -The description of this box is a model of minuteness and 



