Common objects of the microscopeWood, J. G. (John George)
Science
Common objects of the microscope
Wood, J. G. (John George)
Microscopes; Microscopy
In shape, those of the mammalia are circular discs, mostly with a
concave centre, though the camel has oval ones; those of the birds are
more or less oval and convex; those of the reptiles are decidedly oval,
very thin, and have the nucleus projecting; and those of the fishes are
oval and mostly convex. During the process of coagulation the blood
corpuscles run together into a series of rows, just as if a heap of
pence had been piled on each other and then pushed down, so that each
penny overlaps its next neighbour.
These objects are illustrated by six examples on Plate X. Fig. 2 is
human blood, showing one of the white corpuscles; Fig. 3 is the blood
of the pigeon; Fig. 4, of the _Proteus anguínus_; Fig. 5, of the
tortoise; Fig. 6, of the frog, showing the projecting nucleus; and
Fig. 7, of the roach. The blood possesses many curious properties,
which cannot be described in these few and simple pages.
In the centre of Plate X. is a large circular figure representing
the membrane of a frog’s foot as seen through the microscope, and
exhibiting the circulation of the blood. The mode of arranging the foot
so as to exhibit the object without hurting the frog is simple enough.
Take an oblong slip of wood,--my own was made in five minutes out of
the top of a cigar-box,--bore a hole about an inch in diameter near
one end, and cut a number of little slits all round the edge of the
wooden slip. Then get a small linen bag, put the frog into it, and dip
him into water to keep him comfortable. When he is wanted, pull one of
his hind feet out of the bag, draw the neck tight enough to prevent
him from pulling his foot back again, but not sufficiently tight to
stop the circulation. Have a tape fastened to the end of the bag, and
tie it down to the wooden slide. Then fasten a thread to each of his
toes, bring the foot well over the centre of the hole, stretch the toes
well apart, and keep them in their places by hitching the threads into
the notches on the edge of the wooden strip. Perhaps an easier plan
is to secure the threads by drops of sealing-wax when in the desired
position. Push a glass slide carefully between the foot and the wood,
so as to let the membrane rest upon the glass, and be careful to keep
it well wetted. If the frog kick, as he will most likely do, pass a
thin tape over the middle of the leg, and tie him gently down to the
slide.
Bring the glass into focus, and the foot will present the appearance
so well depicted in the engraving. The veins and arteries are seen
spreading over the whole of the membrane, the larger arteries being
often accompanied by a nerve, as seen in the illustration. Through all
these channels the blood continually pours with a rather irregular
motion, caused most probably by the peculiar position of the reptile.
It is a most wonderful sight, of which the observer is never tired,
and which seems almost more interesting every time that it is beheld.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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