1880.] 



MICEOSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 



99 



— Botanists find the Botanical Gazette, 

 a monthly magazine which costs but one 

 dollar a year, to be a .valuable periodical, 

 and one which deserves their support. 

 The fifth volume began with the January 

 number. It is published at Crawfords- 

 ville, Ind. 



— We have to record the death of the 

 Rev. Eugene O'Meara, M. A., of Dublin- 

 Co., Ireland ; a man who has been well 

 known to microscopists as a careful student 

 of the diatoms. One of the founders of the 

 Dublin Microscopical Club, he was always 

 one of its most diligent members. All of 

 his scientific work was done during such 

 time as he could spare from his business ; 

 but he has, nevertheless, written many 

 valuable papers on the diatoms of Ireland. 

 His largest work, the " Report on Irish 

 Diatomaceae," is left unfinished. 



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 



[This column is freely open to all who desire in- 

 formation upon any subject connected with micros- 

 copy. It is hoped that the readers will reply promptly 

 to tne questions which are asked.] 



QUESTIONS. 



5. Will some of the readers of the 

 Journal who have had experience in the 

 matter please inform me, which is the 

 best device for insect dissection : the 

 compound instrument with an erector, or 

 a simple microscope of some kind ? Also, 

 what are the powers ordinarily used ? 



W. 



MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETIES 



NEW YORK. 



This Society is in a very flourishing 

 condition ; the meetings are well attended 

 and interesting. The course of public 

 lectures, which was established last year, 

 has been well attended. The last public 

 lecture was delivered by Mr. Alexis A. 

 Julien, on the evening of the i6th of 

 April. His subject was : " Gems of the 

 Pavement," and the lecture was an inter- 

 esting one, devoted to the application of 

 the microscope to the study of rocks and 

 minerals. It was illustrated by a new 

 oxy - hydrogen, projecting' - microscope, 

 having a polariscope attachment. A large 

 number of slides were shown, and de- 



scribed, both with and without polarized 

 light, and the peculiarities of certain min- 

 erals were well exhibited. It w^s said 

 that the sections were shown upon the 

 screen better than any similar objects had 

 previously been seen in New York. 



Central New York Microscopical 

 Club. 



A society was formed at Syracuse, 

 N. Y., on the 6th inst., under the name of 

 the Central New York Microscopical 

 Club ; membership to embrace the county 

 of Onondaga and the counties adjacent 

 thereto. Officers elected for the ensuing 

 year : 



President, Geo. K. Collins ; Vice-Presi- 

 dents, Alfred Mercer, M. D., and Daniel 

 G. Fort, of Oswego ; Secretary, A. L. 

 Woodward ; Treasurer, Robert Aberdein, 

 M. D. 



wellesley. 



The regular meeting was held on Mon- 

 day evening, April 26th, the President, 

 Miss Hayes, in the chair. After reading 

 the Secretary's report, the Society passed 

 a vote of thanks to Dr. C. E. West, of 

 Brooklyn, for the loan of some fine slides. 

 Miss Kitchell read a paper on rock-sec- 

 tions, describing the method of preparing 

 them, the different- kinds which are found 

 in the market, the advantages of micro- 

 scopical investigation of rocks, the varie- 

 ties of inclusions, and illustrating, by 

 black-board drawings, liquid and other 

 cavities, sections of simple minerals and 

 of crystallized rocks which showed the 

 various peculiarities of structure ; with the 

 polarizer she gave brilliant images upon 

 the screen. Under the microscope were 

 exhibited the slides loaned by Dr. West, 

 consisting of several of Dr. Thiersch's in- 

 jected tissues, one of Dr. Watts' slides of 

 gold crystallized by galvanic action, and 

 crystals of silver and tin ; a collection of 

 slides of Lepidoptera prepared by Misses 

 Waterman and Whitney, were very beau- 

 tiful. Miss Cummings exhibited a Proto- 

 coccus reproducing itself by division, and 

 several specimens of fresh-water algae. 

 M. Virginia Smith, Cor. Sec. 



ILLINOIS. 



The annual meeting of the State Micro- 

 scopical Society of Illinois was held on 

 Friday evening, April 23d, 1880. 



The Treasurer's report showed a highly 

 satisfactory financial condition, about $200 

 having been paid in during the past year, 

 while the expenditures were less than $50. 



