Bacteriologie. 171 



and in fluid media a slime was obtained. It was soluble in water 

 and dilute acid but insoluble in dilute alkali. Five per cent. sulphuric 

 acid did not attack it, but by treatment with concentrated acid the 

 slime was h3^drolysed to a mixture of arabinose and galactose. It is 

 thus a pararabin. Dilute acid extracted from the cultures a nucleic 

 acid which hydrolysed to a mixture of galactose and glucose. 



Smith. 



Smith, R.Greig, An Ascobacterium from the Sugar Cane. 

 (Abstr. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. Wales. 1902.) 



A bacterium which occurs normally in the sugar cane forms 

 well-defined asci on Saccharose media. The slime obtained from the 

 cultures 3nelds a reducing sugar which appears to be a pentose. The 

 reactions of the slime are given, and the cultural characters of the 

 organism Bact. sacchari , n. sp. , are described. Smith. 



Smith, R. Greig, A new Gum (Levan) Bacterium from a Sac- 

 charose Exudate of Eucalyptus Stuartiana. (Abstr. Proc. Linn. 

 Soc. N. S. Wales. 1902.) 



A new bacterium, Bact. eucalypti, is described which acts upon 

 Saccharose in a manner precisely similar to Bac. levanifornians , 

 gum-levan and reducing sugars being formed. The acids are small 

 in amount and are formed from the reducing sugars. Lactic is the 

 Chief acid; carbonic, acetic, formic and capric occur in smaller 

 quantity. In the exudate the gum appears to have been formed from 

 raffinose (Eucalyptus rnanna). Saccharose and raffinose are the only 

 two commonl}" occurring sugars capable of being fermented to 

 levan, &c., b}'- the bacterium. Smith. 



Smith, R. Greig, A Slime Bacterium from the Peach, Almond 

 and Cedar iBact. persicce n. sp.). (Abstr. Proc. Linn. Soc. N. S. 

 Wales. 1903.) 



The organism produces a slime, the essential carbohydrate of 

 which readily becomes converted to an insoluble modification. The 

 carbohydrate is easily hydrolysed to arabinose and galactose, the 

 latter sugar preponderating. The insolubility of the gummy consti- 

 tuent when heated under pressure shows that it does not belong 

 to the arabin group. The soluble gum is coagulated by the acetates 

 of lead, barium h\^drate, milk of lime, and aluminium hydrate. The 

 insoluble modification is easily dissolved b}" dilute acids, but not by 

 dilute alkali. A small quantity of gum behaving to reagents like the 

 bacterial gum was separated from the natural gum of the almond. 

 The organism inverts the Saccharose of the nutrient Solutions and 

 at the same time produces gum, traces of ethyl alcohol, carbon 

 dioxide and acids. The acids are lactic, butyric, acetic and formic. 

 The bacterium is non-motile and produces spores. Beyond the for- 

 mation of slime, the growths &c. are not characteristic. 



Smith. 



