200 THE AMERICAN MONTHLY [September, 



scope. Courts should be given a standard by which the power of the 

 microscope can be judged. 



When the discussion was finished the President appointed Professors 

 Ewell, Seaman, and Claypole, Mr. Tohnan and Dr. Stillson as a com- 

 mittee to map out the work of a standing committee on this branch of 

 microscopy. 



On account of the absence of Dr. H. M. Whelpley his paper on 

 " The Application of Microscopy to Pharmacy " was read by title. 



The next paper was by Prof. T. J. Burrill, on " Microscope Objec- 

 tives." The paper was very technical throughout. A number of pho- 

 tographs were distributed illustrating some of the points in the address. 

 A general discussion followed, participated in by Prof Miller, Prof 

 Gage, Prof. Tolman, Dr. Mcintosh, Prof. Ewell, Prof Kellicott, and 

 Gen. J. D. Cox. 



A paper by Mr. C. M. Vorce, of Cleveland, Ohio, on " Additional 

 Notes on Gomphogaster," was read only by title. 



" Some Methods of Treating Nerve Tissue," a paper by Dr. Wm. C. 

 Krauss, of Ithaca, N. Y., was read by Prof. Simon H. Gage. 



This paper causing no discussion, the next paper on the programme, 

 entitled, "A Review of Some of the Medico-Legal Qiiestions Involved 

 in the Cronin Case," was read by Prof. Ewell. He first took up the 

 subject of hair, the identification of which he had previously imagined 

 to be easy enough, but his own experience had convinced him that such 

 was not the case. In a majority of human hairs the medulla cannot 

 be made out and the cortex alone cannot be distinguished from any 

 other. There are many dogs' hairs, which have the characteristics of 

 human hair. "When I gave testimony to that effect in the Cronin 

 case," said the professor, " they said I was an expert at swearing, and 

 that was all. Well, I have collected the hair of 150 different kinds of 

 dogs that were at a bench show, and have mounted many of the kinds. 

 I will give a premium to any one who distinguishes which is the man's 

 and which is the dog's hair." The speaker said, of course, he did not 

 mean all dogs' hair, but a man was overstepping the bounds when he 

 identified hair as being from the human being. There are three meth- 

 ods of identifying human blood — chemical, micro-spectroscopic, and 

 micro-metric. He said it was possible to identify mammalian blood, but 

 not to distinguish human blood from other mammalian blood. Many 

 errors are likely to arise in the matter of the measurements of blood 

 corpuscles, both on account of the uncertainty of the standards of meas- 

 urements, and from the condition of the corpuscle itself. A difficulty 

 also arises in determining the probability of restoring the corpuscle to 

 its original shape. One cannot know that the corpuscle has been re- 

 stored. 



In the discussion which followed. Dr. Mcintosh, and Messrs. Gil- 

 bert, Miller, and Tolman participated. 



Dr. Miller, of Buffalo, announced that he had a specimen of blood 

 taken from Kemmler's heart Sunday, and he found the corpuscles with 

 an apparent rupture on the side of them. President Fell said that Dr. 

 Mcintosh, who has the only slide with blood taken from the brain of 

 Kemmler, would exhibit it by means of a spectroscope. 



The paper on " The Rotifer of Central Michigan," by Prof. Kellicott, 

 was read only by title. 



