28 SOME HINTS ON THE PREPARATION AND 



described, are as follows: Crown glass slips of the usual dimen- 

 sions, 3x1 and of moderate thickness, with cut edges, (grooved or 

 smoothed ones are a needless expense), wooden slips of the same 

 dimensions, with holes through their centres ^ to ^ of an inch in 

 diameter; covers of medium thickness, circles or squares as you 

 prefer, the latter being cheaper and equally good as the former; a 

 supply of porous paper of various thicknesses from that of thick 

 writing to a blotting board, two punches y% and ^ inches in 

 diameter, some thin card board, covered with dead black paper, to 

 form the bottom of the cells when the wooden slips are used, and a 

 supply of colored paper for the backs and edges of the slides, with 

 bronzed or figured ones for the fronts of same. These latter 

 may be purchased of any optician at a small outlay and are made 

 purposely, in very neat and pretty patterns. Labels, of course, oval 

 or round, as one fancies and the tools and materials we have gath- 

 ered together in our balsam mountings will suffice to give us a very 

 pretty outfit wherewith to commence work on our dry mounts. 



What shall we commence with ? Here are some lovely little 

 seeds, it may be of the portulaca, or the common chickenweed. 

 Finding their diameter to be a little less than the thickness of 

 our blotting pad, we will determine to make our cell of the latter, 

 and so proceed to stamp a hole in a portion thereof with our ^ in. 

 punch, 'after which we cut out a square of "/% in., leaving the hole 

 in the center. Before attaching this cell to the glass slip a dead 

 black bottom must be made for it, and this is best done by pasting 

 a strip of the thin black paper upon the slide. And here let me 

 say that the best and most satisfactory paste for this and all subse- 

 quent processes I have ever used is made with ordinary wheat starch, 

 boiled, and beaten to the consistency of thick cream. It adheres 

 tenaciously to glass, wood or paper, and seems to have no tendency 

 whatever to absorb moisture from the surrounding atmosphere. 



The black paper having been pasted upon the slide, the cell is 

 in its turn to be pasted upon the paper so that its center shall be 

 precisely in the centre of the slide, when a weight should be placed 

 upon it until'dry, and firmly attached. The seeds may be attached 

 to the bottom of the cell by means of shellac cement, or liquid glue. 

 Still better and in every way satisfactory is a cement made by dis- 

 solving a small quantity of shred gelatine in* cold water, gently 

 heating it after being dissolved. This should be made in small 



