118 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [May, 



connection I would like to say that we ought to agitate as much as pos- 

 sible for a national adulteration law. State laws for various reasons are 

 dead letters, and moreover any State not very strict in its enforcement 

 becomes the dumping-ground of all the adulterated stuff from States more 

 vigilant. The amount we are out of pocket (to say nothing of really 

 dangerous admixtures, and especially of diluted medicines, etc.) from 

 this source alone must be enormous." 



Prof 11. N. Conser, of New l^erlin, Pa , contributes a slide of cere- 

 bellum of seal to the same box. This was hardened with chromic acid 

 and alcohol, stained in toto with borax carmine, cut to 1-50 mm. on 

 Jung microtome, and mounted in balsam. 



Blood corpuscles of Newt, by Mr. H. M. Kelly, alsoof jSTew BeHin, 

 Pa., constitutes No. 3 of this box. It was prepared by Gage's method, 

 mounted in glycerine with i per cent glacial acetic acid, and should 

 be examined with a ^-inch objective. " The blood is allowed to drop 

 into 6-10 per cent, salt solution ; corpuscles will sink after a time. 

 Fixed in picric acid and stained in picro-carmine." 



Prof. Biscoe, of Marietta, Ohio, contributes a specimen of interstitial 

 method of paraffin embedding in the form of a longitudinal section of 

 head of blossom of marigold. 



Mr. C. K. Wells, also of Marietta, contributes a specimen of Hydrozoa 

 killed with corrosive sublimate, stained with borax carmine, embedded 

 in paraffin, and cut with microtome. 



In Box il/, Prof. Bessey, of Lincoln, Nebreska, contributes slime 

 mould, Dictydium cprniium^ mounted in glycerine jelly, and for the 

 non-botanical reader thus describes the object: "Slime moulds are 

 among the lowest of plants. They are protophytes, and in many points 

 show an evident relation to protozoa. The specimen shows the spore- 

 bearing stage. Before spore bearing, the organism was a naked, ama^ba- 

 like mass of protoplasm, endowed with a good deal of mobility." 



Concerning another object whose description is very briefly given and 

 which Dr. S. G. Shanks, with his usual painstaking accuracy has fig- 

 ured and described, a critic says: "All honor to Dr. Shanks who so 

 kindly gives his time and knowledge to help those of us who are not 

 versed in histological points of these slides. May he long live to help 

 us out." The notes of such experts as Dr. Shanks add greatly to the 

 work of the Club. Would that the number of such concise and instruc- 

 tive notes were greatly increased." 



MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETIES. 



Washington, D. C. — L. M. Mooers, Secretary. 



Since the beginning of the year the meetings have been well attended 

 and much interest has been manifested. The membership has been 

 increased by the following new members, some of them well-known 

 workers and specialists: Dr. H. L. E. Johnson, Dr. W. W. Alleger, 

 Dr. C. W. Richardson, Dr. J. Foster Scott, Columbia Hospital; Mr. 

 J. M. Stedman, Agricultural Department; Dr. Cooper Curtice, Agri- 

 cultural Department; Mr. John Grinsted, Dr. Geo. H. Penrose, resi- 

 dent physician at the Soldiers' Home, and Mr. M. E. Schneider. 



Some especially fine papers have been presented and discussed, 

 among them the following : 



