Answers to Queries. 15 
warm place, and blow a little gveen dust of common mould upon 
its surface, and leave for ten days ora fortnight. Or, if no mould 
is at hand, it will probably be covered with penicillium if left to 
itself. Sometimes, however, the fluid is overrun with bacteria, to 
the exclusion of everything else. By hardening the mould in 
alcohol, or by fixing with picric acid, and subsequently treating 
with staining reagents, the numerous nuclei may be seen. I treat 
as for ordinary preparations, and mount in glycerine. VV. A. L. 
351.—Intestine.—Float a piece of the mucous membrane, with 
the villi downwards, upon the surface of the chromic acid harden- 
ing solution. In this way the villi become erect and firm, and 
good sections of rows of villi may be obtained (Beale). 
J; A Hoge, 
352.—Olfactory Mucous Membrane.—Harden the head of 
newt in Miiller’s fluid for 4 or 5 days. Snip out the upper part of 
the nostril. Scrape mucous membrane of the detached portion 
with scalpel point. Dissociate with needles, and preserve in 
Farrant. They may be stained in picro-carmine and mounted in 
glycerine. (2) Place fresh mucous membrane in dilute alcohol for 
an hour, then 5 minutes in osmic acid (1 per cent.) and then in water, 
This gives the cells more resistance. Scrape off the membrane, 
and separate in water of picro-carmine. (3) The superior tur- 
binated bone, or upper part of the nasal septum, of a recently 
killed rabbit, place in chromic acid and spirit for a week ; then in 
chromic and nitric acid until the thin bone is softened ; wash in 
water, place in alcohol. Cut thin vertical sections and stain in 
logwood, mount in balsam or glycerine. (4) Take a fresh mouse’s 
head ; place in solution, as 3. When decalcified, wash and pre- 
serve in spirit. A transverse section should be made through the 
nose, cut perpendicularly to the plate of the palate. Stain with 
logwood and eosin, and mount in dammar. Vi ALE: 
395.—Mounting Starches.—The method described on p. 35 of 
this volume gives very satisfactory results. Davies recommends 
balsam thinned with turpentine. Cooke uses salicylate of soda. 
Dr. Muter, editor of Zhe Analyst, finds that the granules retain 
their character longest by being mounted in a mixture of glycerine 
(1 part) and camphor water (2 parts). J. A. Hoce. 
358.— Pollen.— Mix a little ripe pollen with some of the clear 
viscid fluid from the stigma. Put on a cover, and view with 4 or 
¥% o.g. ‘The pollen-tube extends itself, while the whole contents 
of the cell are in motion. Pollen of lilies answers best. If 
‘“‘Botanic” desires to prepare stigmas, showing pollen-tubes, he 
will find full directions on p. 55 of the January number of Zhe 
Journal of Microscopy. J. A. Hoae. 
