4 HISTORY OF MICROBIOLOGY. 



He succeeded in cultivating the "blue milk" microbe in mallow slime, and 

 re-developed the blue color in milk by introducing some of his culture. 

 The organisms obtained were sent to Ehrenberg, who named them Bac- 

 terium syncyaneum, now known as B. cyanogenus, Ps. syncyanea and 

 B. synxanthum, a name which is still retained in the literature. 



Since 1860 the master mind of Louis Pasteur has dominated the realm 

 ' of microbiology. His epoch-making discoveries were largely due to his in- 

 tuitive vision, his skill in device and in the adaptation of means to ends, his 

 prodigious industry, and the enthusiasm and love with which he inspired 

 his associates. Trained as a chemist, his first appointment was to a pro- 

 fessorship of chemistry, and his earliest research dealt with problems 

 in molecular chemistry and physics. On his being elected Dean of the 

 Faculty of Sciences at Lille, he commenced to study fermentation. His 

 work in this field was soon followed by important results: the discovery of 

 the organisms which produce lactic and butyric fermentation, and of 

 anaerobic life, or life which flourishes without free oxygen. He devised 

 an improved method of making vinegar, and demonstrated the presence 

 of the acetic organism which he named Mycoderma aceti. Later he 

 studied the diseases of wine, and discovered that bitterness or greasiness 

 was due to a special ferment, and suggested the heating of wines in closed 

 bottles to a temperature of 60, in order to kill the injurious micro- 

 organisms. This process, since called pasteurization, is now largely 

 used, and makes it possible for manufactures and merchants to keep and 

 export wine without losing its flavor or bouquet. It is interesting in this 

 connection to note that a French confectioner named Appert published, 

 in 1811, his method of preserving fruits, vegetables, and liquors by heating 

 and sealing, and hence may be looked upon as the founder of the packing 

 and canning industry. 



In 1864-65 the silk districts of that region of France, known as the 

 Midi, suffered such serious losses that the yield of cocoons fell from twenty- 

 six million kilogrammes to four million, which entailed a loss of twenty 

 million dollars and caused widespread distress and poverty. An epidemic 

 had broken out among the silk-worms, the dread disease known as 

 Pebrine. Pasteur was induced to make an investigation as to the best 

 means of combating the epidemic; and, after several years of study, he 

 found the organism causing the disease, suggested remedies, and brought 

 back wealth to the ruined communities, but at the cost to himself of im- 

 paired health and partial paralysis. 



