106 



THE AMERICAN MONTHLY 



[June, 



ed to the ovary, to grope about in 

 search of the micropyle of the ovules ; 

 at all events, as thus only few of the 

 tubes could come in contact with the 

 micropyle, the chance would be that 

 the greater number would remain 

 unfertilized. Nature leaves nothing 

 to chance ; it has provided simple 

 and certain means for the fertilization 

 of all the ovules in the ovary. The 

 anatropous ovules are fertilized by 

 their inversion on the funicules, 

 bringing the papillae of the micropyle 

 in contact with the papillae of the 

 former. Campylotropous and amphi- 

 tropous ovules come often in contact 

 with the funiculus or with the papillae 

 of the walls or septa of the ovary, ac- 

 cording to the length of the funiculus. 

 The orthotropous ovules are fertilized 

 in the same manner. 



The orthotropous ovules of the 

 coniferae, are fertilized by the pollen 

 falling directly on them, which is an 

 old observed fact. 



Not having had the advantage of 

 personal instruction by professors of 

 the science to which I am devoted 

 merely as an amateur, it occurred 

 to me, some time ago, that per- 

 haps the fine fibrillae of the conduct- 

 ing tissue in the style might be the 

 pollen-tubes of the authors. I applied 

 for information at headquarters, but 

 I have not been favored with a reply; 

 I should be glad to receive the de- 

 sired information from anyone who 

 may be able to give it. 



J. Kruttschnitt. 



Abstract of the Address of the 

 President of the Royal Micro- 

 scopical Society, London. 



PROF. P. MARTIN DUNCAN, M. B., LOND., 

 F. R. S., ETC. 



* * * * * * * 



When we consider, moreover, the 

 large number of observations record- 

 ed the past year by the various Socie- 

 ties, which receive communications 

 principally worked out by means of 

 the microscope, it cannot fail to be 



recognized that the activity and pro- 

 gress of microscopy are greater now 

 that at any former time, and that the 

 tendency is to still further increase. 

 The most valuable part of our bi- 

 monthly Journal, is the summary 

 which it contains of this stupendous 

 amount of o riginal work. The micro- 

 scope is, moreover, being carried into 

 new fields. It now promises to be 

 of great assistance to the chemist, 

 and while but a few years ago no one 

 thought of including it among the 

 essential tools of the geologist, it is 

 extensively applied at the present 

 time to the examination of rocks, and 

 most valuable results have been 

 brought to light by its aid. Instead 

 then of allowing ourselves to be tempt- 

 ed to bemoan the " stagnation of 

 microscopy " we, as a Society devoted 

 to its study, may congratulate our- 

 selves and the rest of the scientific 

 world, that whether as regards theory 

 or practice — the optical and mechani- 

 cal or the observational part of our 

 science — there has never been a time 

 when so much evidence could be 



produced of solid progress as now. 

 ******* 



The Abbe Theory of Micro- 

 scopical Vision. — Although those 

 views are now several years old, and 

 were brought before the Society so 

 long ago as 1877, by our then Treas- 

 urer, Mr. J. W. Stephenson, the re- 

 cognition of the extraordinary nature 

 of the experiments, Avas, until lately, 

 confined to a very small circle. Both 

 in this country and in Germany and 

 America, however, the past year has 

 seen a great extension in the number 

 of those who have followed these ex- 

 periments, and who have appreciated 

 the important bearing which they 

 have on microscopical vision. 



I have used the term " extraordi- 

 nary," because I think that every one 

 who has seen these experiments will 

 readily agree that it is extraordinary, 

 in every sense of the word, to find, 

 that merely by excluding a greater or 

 less number of the " diffraction " 

 images found at the back of the ob- 



