144 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



arises whether B. radicola, the bacteria of the legume tubercles, can 

 fix atmospheric nitrogen independently of its life in the legume tuber- 

 cles. As a matter of fact, Beyerink and Maze claim to have proved 

 that this organism can fix elementary nitrogen independently of leg- 

 umes. We should note here the remarkable fact that although this or- 

 ganism is so universally distributed and common in all soils, all attempts 

 to isolate it from the soil directly have not been successful. 



There are probably a half a dozen bacteria capable of fixing atmos- 

 pheric nitrogen known to-day, and there is little doubt that others will 

 be found before long. As it is, we are fully justified in the claim that 

 soil bacteria are a potent, nay, an indispensable, factor in the creation 

 of the world's food. Though they are to most of us an invisible world, 

 though many of us never suspect their existence, they are yet our 

 staunch friends, living their brief life, contributing to a broader life, 

 making it possible for the finite to dream of the infinite. 



