On Microscopes in General. 9 



in its appliances, works of course at the pleasure of 

 the exhibitor : that light shines when wanted ; far 

 different is the case with the solar instrument, at 

 least in this climate ! It screws into a hole in a 

 window shutter, waiting for the sunshine that often 

 fails to come. A microscope of this sort was the 

 first ever shown to the writer, who afterwards became 

 its owner, and recalls to mind the exceeding interest 

 with which parties of young people would look 

 together at the objects, imaged in gigantic propor- 

 tions, the grief they evinced when the light suddenly 

 faded, and the good humour with which they con- 

 sented to watch the picture of the drifting clouds, 

 thrown camera-obscura-wise on the screen by 

 removing part of the machine. Then how often 

 even this faded away, rain came on, and the exhi- 

 bition closed abruptly. It was at the time a dis- 

 appointment ; but led, I believe, to my trying to 

 draw microscope pictures less transient than those 

 on the screen, and to address a larger number than 

 I could well have assembled around the old solar 

 microscope. 



