220 PEOOEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. [^'o'JfSi. ol^^^^^^^^^^ 
off so as to leave a tubular opening of the required fineness. The 
piston consists of a moderately fine screw, firmly inserted below into 
a sound cork shaped to fit the tube, and passing above through a cir- 
cular nut working in a ring. This ring has soldered to it below a bit 
of metal tube large enough to let the screw pass freely through it, and 
fitting loosely into the upper end of the glass tube, to which it may be 
attached by sealing-wax in exactly the same way as the vaccine tube 
is to the other end. On turning the nut the piston will be raised or 
lowered as required. The syringe must be filled completely with 
water before use ; it will then act with the utmost precision and deli- 
cacy. Any object selected is brought to the mouth by the stage move- 
ments, and on turning the nut is instantly sucked up, and can be as 
readily deposited wherever required. Where two needles are desired 
the second should be attached to the stage in the same way as the 
stage forceps. 
PKOCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES.* 
EOYAL MiOROSOOPIOAL SoOIETY. 
King's College, September 22, 1869. 
The Society will hold its first meeting of the session on Wednes- 
day evening, the 13th of October, at 8 p.m., when the following papers 
will be read : — " On Immersion Objectives and Nobert's Test-Plate," 
by Lieut.-Col. Woodward, U.S. army ; " On High-power Definition, 
with illustrative examples," by G. W. Royston Pigott, M.D., F.R.A.S.; 
and Mr. Carruthers will give {viva voce) a communication " On Plants 
of the Coal-measures." 
Walter W. Peeves, 
Assist. Secretary. 
QuEKETT Microscopical Club.I 
At the ordinary meeting, held at University College, Aug. 27, 1869, 
Dr. E. Braithwaite, F.L.S., Vice-President, in the chair, three new 
members were elected. Several donations to the club were announced, 
and four gentlemen were proposed for membership. A paper by Mr. 
G. W. Hart, " On Oysters and Oyster Spat," was read by the secretary, 
in which the growth and development of the embryo oyster was de- 
scribed at length, and a number of interesting questions as to the 
mode of fertilization and reproduction were brought forward. The 
paper was illustrated by diagrams. Mr. B. T. Lowne made some ob- 
servations upon the subject of the fertilization of the oyster spat, 
* Secretaries of Societies will greatly oblige us by writing out their reports 
legibly — especially the technical tsrms — and by " underlining " words, such as 
specific names, which must be printed in italics. They will thus ensure accuracy 
and enhance the value of their proceedings. — Ed. M. M. J. 
t Report supplied by Mr. R. T. Lewis. 
