SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



M3 



Mr.G. 'J'. W. Newsholme, E.C.S. The Hon. Secretary 

 is Mr. John Austen, of 27 High Street, Sheffield. 



During tlic |i;isl year the ,S< >cii'( v has been enriched 

 by the presentation of a Powell ami Lealand No. 1 

 microscope, with Zeiss' apochromatic objectives 

 and eyepieces, together with lamp ami other 

 accessories. It is sad to have to record thai the 

 donor of this princely gift, Mr. Samuel Cocker, 

 of Sheffield, who had himself been a member for 

 only a few months, died about a month later, in 

 January of last year, before his gifl was ready 

 for presentation. 



Mountixc in Glycerine. — Mr. John H. Schaff- 

 ner, in the American "Journal of Applied 

 Microscopy," recommends a rather original method 

 of mounting objects in glycerine, which has proved 

 very satisfactory in his hands. Ordinarily speak- 

 ing, glycerine is a most difficult and often treacher- 

 ous medium in which to mount, if only on account 

 of the difficulty of securely and permanently closing 

 the cell. Mr. Schaffner's method is to transfer 

 the objects from water to pure glycerine by adding 

 the glycerine gradually and permitting the water 

 to evaporate until absolutely pure glycerine alone 

 is left. The objects are then placed in a small 

 drop of glycerine jelly on a slide, and the whole of 

 the remaining broad space to be subsequently 

 covered by the cover glass is filled with Canada 

 balsam. The two media will not mix, and the 

 wide surrounding film of Canada balsam makes a 

 secure mount, even without sealing. 



Method of Paraffin Infiltration.— Mr. C. M. 

 Thurston in the "Journal of Applied Microscopy " 

 states that he has found the following method of 

 paraffin infiltration very successful. .The essential 

 feature consists in applying heat to the upper sur- 

 face of the paraffin of such an intensity as to 

 melt the paraffin only for a sufficient depth to sub- 

 merge the tissues requiring infiltration. The object- 

 lies on the unmelted par - arfin, and recedes from the 

 heat if the heat increases, and the paraffin melts 

 more deeply. Small glass cups, 4 cm. in diameter 

 by 5 cm. deep, are fiWed with melted paraffin, which 

 is allowed to cool. The cups are then placed under 

 a copper plate suspended on a tripod or retort stand. 

 The flame should be at such a distance and of 

 sufficient intensity to melt the paraffin 1 or 2 cm. 

 deep. 



Bausch & Lomb's "EB" Microscope.— Messrs. 

 A. E. Staley & Co., of 35 Aldermanbury, E.C., have 

 submitted to our notice several of the stands and 

 accessories manufactured by the Bausch & Lomb 

 Optical Company of America, to whose catalogue we 

 recently briefly referred, and for whom Messrs. Staley 

 are the English agents. As we have endeavoured 

 to make these columns a record of microscopical 

 progress, and to keep our readers informed of all 

 new stands and accessories that are brought out 

 from time to time by the various makers, we are 

 glad of an opportunity to call attention to the 

 stands of this firm. The cheapest was a non- 

 inclinable horseshoe stand, fitted with coarse 

 adjustment of sound workmanship, substantial 

 stage and mirrors, and sold for twenty-one shillings, 

 or with a divisible 1^- and J-inch objective and one 

 eyepiece for £1 18s. 6d. This is really a workman- 

 like instrument, and would serve many purposes of 

 a beginner. Nearly all the instruments are on the 

 Continental model, with pillar and horseshoe foot, 

 and micrometer screw fine adjustment of the tri- 

 angular bar form. We illustrate the "BB" stand 



herewith. Ii is of brass throughout, with spiral 

 rack and pinion coarse adjustment : tine adjust- 

 ment as mentioned above, with graduated hea 

 graduated nickelled draw-tube, working in cloth- 

 lined >leeve, which gives a very > moot I ivement ; 



and vulcanite stage 3 3f inches. The draw- 

 tube, however, only extends to 190 millimetres 

 (11 inches), which, though sufficient for objectives 



corrected lor I he Continental loliglll of tube, 



is not long enough for those corrected for the 

 standard English length. Both main tube and 

 draw-tube are fitted with the English "society" 

 screw, and the eyepieces are of R.M.S. No. 2 

 gauge. In the stand illustrated the sub-stage, 

 which is also of the ••society" gauge, is adjust- 

 able by means of spiral screw; but an in- 

 geniously arranged iris-diaphragm is fitted so as 

 to work immediately beneath the opining of the 

 stage itself for use with condenser removed, the 

 condenser having also its independent iris-dia- 

 phragm. The price of this stand alone without 

 eyepieces, objectives, or condenser is £5 ; in 



Bausi ii & Lomb "BB" Microscope. 



polished wood case, with one eyepiece and |-inch 

 and i-inch objectives. &1 Is. lOd. ; and with Abbe 

 condenser with iris-diaphragm. 15s. extra. We 

 have tested both objectives and found them ex- 

 cellent, and particularly free from colour, whilst 

 a i-inch immersion objective, of 1'32 N.A.. sold at 

 £5 3s., proved to be one of the best lenses we have 

 had through our hands. The same micro-cope is 

 made without inclination and a plain sub-stage 

 ring for condenser at a proportionately lower price, 

 also with an elaborate sub-stage of the later Con- 

 tinental type, which we think, however, unneces- 

 sarily complex. The workmanship of all the stands 

 is excellent. 



For further articles on Microscopic subjects 

 see pp. 329, 332, and 333. 



