Abstract
IT is now some twenty-five years since the first edition of this work appeared, and as the author himself remarks in his Preface, it is no small compliment to a work of this kind that for so many years it should hold a place among works of reference, although surrounded by larger and more pretentious volumes. For this third edition the book has been entirely rewritten, the advancement of microscopical science having naturally rendered considerable enlargements necessary. Still the work retains its principal qualities as before, viz., the precise and clear language, the absence of all unnecessary verbiage, and last but not least, the excellent arrangement of the contents. Thus after a brief reference to the history and importance of microscopy, we have able descriptions of the microscope itself and its accessories, followed by general remarks on its use and the more modern methods of microscopic investigation. Then, after a short chapter on the mounting and preserving of objects, we come to well-written and richly illustrated treatises on the application of the instrument in the different sciences, each science being spoken of in turn and in a separate chapter. For the beginner this arrangement is of special value, as it enables him quickly to form a general idea of the whole domain of microscopy. Mineralogy and Geology are followed by a chapter on Microscopic Chemistry; then the author treats of Microscopic Biology, devoting a chapter to Vegetable Histology and Botany, one to Zoology, the next to Animal Histology, and the last to Practical Medicine and Pathology.
The Microscopist: a Manual of Microscopy and Compendium, of the Microscopic Sciences. Third edition.
By J. H. Wythe (London: Churchill, 1877.)
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The Microscopist: a Manual of Microscopy and Compendium, of the Microscopic Sciences Third edition. Nature 16, 6 (1877). https://doi.org/10.1038/016006b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/016006b0