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PAINTING SLIDES FOR THE MICROSCOPE. OCT., 1890. 
PAINTING LANTERN SLIDES DIRECT FROM THE 
MICROSCOPE * 
BY H. M. J. UNDERHILL. 
Although photo-micrography is very popular as a means 
of transferring pictures of microscopic objects to lantern 
slides, painting is in many respects greatly superior to it. In 
the first place a well-painted slide looks much better on the 
screen than a photograph, because it is so much brighter, 
and because it is coloured. Secondly, objects of any thick¬ 
ness cannot be properly photographed, because you cannot 
get every part in focus at once ; and they are very readily 
drawn. And thirdly, a plioto-micrograph takes everything 
in the field of view, and gives microscopic vision. The 
microscopist does not notice this, but the layman, whose eyes 
are not educated to see through a microscope, fails to under¬ 
stand the picture. In a painting you draw just what parts 
you like, and you translate it from microscopic to ordinary 
vision. So to those who can draw I say, paint your 
slides rather than photograph them. It does not take a 
longer time—reckoning the many failures which our photo¬ 
graphic friends seem to make—and you never have to apolo¬ 
gise for a slide, as they so often do, saying, “ This is a very 
good slide, you know, but-.” 
The method of painting that I am going to describe is not 
new. The beginning of it was described by Dr. Dallinger in 
the “ Microscopical Journal ” of some years ago. I did not 
know this until the other day, for I was taught it by a friend, 
who learned it from his friend, who, I believe, learned it in 
Paris. It is just as easy and no more difficult than painting 
on paper, but having now practised the process for three years 
and a half I have learnt a few “ wrinkles” which I propose 
to relate. 
The first thing is the glass to paint on. This is ground 
glass, similar to that of which the focussing glasses of photo¬ 
graphic cameras are made. It is called “ smoothed.” 
I once ordered it as “ the finest ground ” glass, and got some 
very coarse stuff. In “smoothed” the grinding is so fine 
that the grain is hardly perceptible. This takes the paint 
beautifully, and much better than common glass varnished. 
Then you need transparent glass to cover your pictures when 
finished. This costs about 3s. 6d. a gross, and the smoothed 
crown is about 9s. a gross. Of course I buy it ready cut in 
3Jin. squares. The best sort is thin “patent plate; “best 
crown ” is not good enough. 
*Read before the Birmingham Natural History and Microscopical 
Society, March 4th, 1890. 
