The Microscope and its Revelations

This work, which has now reached its third edition, needs no commendation from us. It is undoubtedly the best manual on the use of the microscope in the English language. Nevertheless, this edition contains a large mass of new matter which claims our recognition. The classification of the Dia- tomaceæ has been remodelled in accordance with the views of Mr. Ralfs, and the account of that group has been considerably extended. The account of the Rhizopoda has been altogether rewritten, and that of the Infusoria has been augmented by a summary of Balbiani’s recent researches on their sexual reproduction. As might be expected from the extent of the author’s own researches on Foraminifera, the chapter on these organisms has been rewritten and greatly extended. Mr. Salter’s researches on the teeth of Echinus, and those of Mr. Houghton on the parasitic habits of the larva of Anodon, have been embodied with...