8 A LABORATORY MANUAL OF BOTANY 
turned. It should be provided with the rack and pinion 
and fine adjustments, with 1-inch and 2-inch eyepieces, and 
with a %-inch objective, together with either a 4,4, or 4 
objective. Such an instrument is made by several reliable 
firms, and costs from $30 to $50. Fairly good instruments 
may be had at a lower price. 
Student supplies.—Each student should be provided with 
the following articles: (1) a scalpel, a slender knife-blade 
set in a straight wooden handle; (2) a pair of needles, 
which the student may make by setting the eye end of 
medium-sized needles in holders of soft wood (these may 
be purchased at slight cost if they are not made in the 
laboratory); (3) a pair of forceps (small straight-pointed 
ones are best); (4) a pipette or “medicine dropper” is 
found convenient for putting drops of water upon the 
mounts; (5) a few glass slides and cover-slips for mak- 
ing mounts for the microscope; (6) a watch-glass or other 
small dish for keeping water at hand during laboratory 
work; (7) a sheet of blotting-paper; (8) drawing mate- 
rials, consisting of heavy drawing-paper, a rather hard 
pencil, and a piece of sponge rubber; (9) a note-book for 
laboratory notes (this may be made together with the draw- 
ing-book). It will be found advisable for the school to 
own and lend to the student all these things except those 
directly connected with the drawings and notes. In the 
laboratory there should also be two or three good section 
razors, a good stone for sharpening them, and another for 
the scalpels; also a good balance with which careful weights 
of plants may be made. 
The description, use, and care of the microscope..—In 
beginning to use the compound microscope each student 
should read the following description and at the same time 
1 Although the microscope may not be used for some time in any 
extended work, it will be best to get acquainted with its use at the 
outset. 
