24 T?HE YOUNG 
strong alcohol, and soak it until all grease 
and dirt have been removed. If you have 
no time for this, however, as when some- 
body plucks a hair and asks you to show 
It, simply wipe it and place it on the slide. 
If there should be no objection to doing 
so, cut off a piece of the hair, about half 
an inch long, and use that. Take a clean 
slide and place on it a drop of a mixture 
of equal parts of glycerine, alcohol and 
water, as described in the Young Scientist 
for December, 1879. In this drop place 
the hair ; arrange it by means of a needle 
stuck in a small wooden handle, and when 
the hair has been thoroughly moistened 
and covered with the liquid, place a i^iece 
of thin glass over it. You can now place 
HUMAN HAIE SEEN UNDEE THE MICEOSCOPE. 
it under the microscope, when it will look 
just as we have shown it in the engraving. 
Across the body of the hair are seen many 
lines; these are the edges of the scales 
with which the hair is covered, and the 
saw-like notches are the edges of these 
scales seen in profile. 
It will be noticed that along the centre 
of the hair there is a light streak ; it was 
this which gave rise to the idea that hairs 
were tubular. It will be found, however, 
that a solid wire presents the same ap- 
pearance, so that the light streak is due 
to the round form of the hair, and not to 
its being hollow. This is proved more 
fully by cutting the hair square across, 
and looking at it endwise. In regard to 
the best methods of doing this we shall 
have something to say in a future article. 
Cheap Lathes and How to Use 
Them.-II. 
CHOICE OF A LATHE. 
WE at first intended to address our- 
selves wholly to those who were 
•already in possession of a turning lathe, 
"but since the publication of our first ar- 
ticle on the subject, we have received so 
SCIENTIST. 
many requests for advice in regard to the 
purchase of this tool, that we feel obliged 
to say something in regard to the choice 
of a lathe. 
Lathes can be obtained at almost any | 
price, from $3 up to $1,500. The cheapest 
lathes are those little things attached to f 
scroll saws. In these lathes, poor as they f 
generally are, a turner who is really ex- 
pert can make some very pretty and very 
useful articles. We say really expert, be- 
cause it is not every man that can turn j 
out fine- work that is really expert. In I 
many cases the lathe itself does nearly all ! 
the work, being self-acting and furnished 
with all necessary means and appliances. 
On such a lathe the merest bungler can 
do good work. But to take a w^eak, shaky, 
untrue lathe, and by skilful manipulation 
to bring forth something presentable, that 
shows true skill. Many of our readers, no 
doubt, own such lathes ; hereafter we will 
tell them how to remedy their defects 
and avoid the errors which these defects 
are likely to introduce, but in giving 
advice in regard to the choice of a lathe, 
we would say avoid them. A beginner 
should, if possible, procure a good tool, 
for he will need its aid to produce respect- 
able work, and besides he will find diffi- 
culties and defects enough in himself 
without having to worry over those of his 
lathe. 
At prices ranging from $15 to $25 very 
excellent lathes may now be had. These 
lathes are all metal ; the workmanship is 
excellent, and the material is of the best. 
If the lowest of these figures is beyond the 
reach of the reader, he must content him- 
self with one of those lathes which have 
only metal heads on wooden " shears " or 
"bed," as this part is sometimes called. 
At one time wooden shears were very 
common, even in the best lathes, and 
some of the old tools, with mahogany 
beds, were capable of doing very accurate 
work. But since the planing machine, and 
other tools driven by steam power, enable 
us to work iron almost as easily as wood 
was formerly worked, wood has been aban- 
doned as a material for lathes except in 
the very cheapest kinds. Therefore, when 
only a very cheap lathe is within the reach 
of the reader, he will probably select one 
