72 



THE AMERICA!^ MONTHLY 



[April, 



imbed themselves fully, while the 

 flat, lenticular grains, if they strike 

 upon their flat side, will only indent 

 the wood, but if they strike edge- 

 wise will cut partially into the fibres 

 if crossing their direction, but bury 

 themselves deeply between them if 

 they strike with a cutting edge in 

 ,the direction of their length. In 

 these various ways may suggestions 

 be gained as to the kind of powder 

 and weapon used, the weight of the 

 charge, the distance fired, the time 

 that has elapsed, and the treatment 

 to which the surface may have 

 been subjected by nature, by 

 accident, or by design. Further 

 light may be obtained from the 

 character of the hole made by the 

 ball in passing through the glass ; 

 but this is independent of micros- 

 copical aid. 



These hints concerning some of 

 the fresher fields of microscopical 

 study, show that it is timely as well 

 as fascinating, practical as well as 

 scientific. We pursue it at a 

 favorable time. Never before was 

 the microscope as serviceable an ins- 

 trument as at present ; never before 

 were good microscopes so plenty 

 and so cheap, or cheap microscopes 

 half so good ; never, perhaps, were 

 more important fields for work fully 

 open and recognized but yet 

 unoccupied. We shall do poor work, 

 indeed, if we do not make the 

 microscope not only a source of 

 pleasure to ourselves, but of more 

 serious profit to science and to 

 humanity. 



Second Day. — The second day 

 of the meeting opened with a large 

 attendance of members. 



A communication from Mr. E. 

 H. Grifiith, of Fairport, N. Y., 

 offering special inducements to the 

 preparer of the best series of slides, 

 illustrating the adulteration of some 

 common articles of food, was re- 



ceived, for which the thanks of the 

 Society were tendered. 



Dr. Lucien Howe, of Buffalo, 

 read a somewhat technical paper on 

 the " Development of the Eusta- 

 chian Tube and the Middle Ear." 

 He called attention to the apparent 

 contradiction of the authorities on 

 the subject of the development of 

 this tube, and described its appear- 

 ance in ten embryos, representing 

 as many different stages of devel- 

 opment. 



"In an embryo, 56°""- in length, 

 the appearance is not unlike that 

 described by Kolliker, in a chicken, 

 at the tenth day of foetal existence. 

 In another of YS""*"- in length, 

 the sides of the first branchial fissure 

 have not only closed, but in doing 

 so have apparently left a spot or 

 opening between them at one point, 

 and the pharyngeal wall in that 

 vicinity is bent outwards, as it were, 

 into a kind of diverticulum to- 

 wards the otic vesicle. 



" In -a still older stage this vesicle 

 is increased in length by the for- 

 mation of new tissue, about the ap- 

 parent pocket from the pharynx, 

 until finally the middle ear appears 

 at its extremity. It will readily be 

 inferred that the opening wliich 

 persists on the sight of the other- 

 wise closed branchial fissure, and at 

 which point the middle ear after- 

 ward appears, is, in fact, the rudi- 

 ment of that cavity." 



Dr. Carl Seiler, of Philadelphia, 

 followed with a paper on "JPho- 

 tography as an Aid to Microscopical 

 Investigation." It was a practical 

 and interesting paper, and calcu- 

 lated to interest microscopists. 



The next paper was read by Prof. 

 J. Edwards Smith, of Cleveland, 

 Ohio, entitled, " Remarks concern- 

 ing Modem Objectives." 



Afternoon Session. — Mr. J. D. 

 Hyatt, of Morrisania, New York, 



