EXPERIMENT STATION REPORTS. 95 



people of these portions feel their losses keenly, as the sections where the 

 disease occurs are not the best from an agricultural standpoint. 



Respectfully submitted, 



GEO. A. WATERMAN, 



Consulting Veterinarian. 

 Agricultural College, Mich., June 30, 1905. 



REPORT OF THE BACTERIOLOGIST. 



To the Director of the Experiment Station: 



There is much work which cannot be reported out this year, still it can 

 be safel}^ stated that no year previous has placed us in as favorable a po- 

 sition to do experimental w^ork as this, owing largely to the adjustment 

 to our new quarters and to the allowance of extra assistants. 



It is customary to report upon work under investigation and state pro- 

 gress; but concerning such work I beg leave to refrain from saying a word, 

 because I realize that many times it causes mischief and fails to contribute 

 any good, and I invite critical investigation at any time. What can be 

 discussed with perfect propriety and what has been accomplished may be 

 considered with frankness. 



The lines of work which have been completed sufficiently to warrant pul)- 

 lication and those lines which are well under way but are not yet read}- 

 to give to the public may be best reviewed separately. 



The manuscript for a bulletin, entitled "Extended Studies of the Asso- 

 ciative Action of Bacteria in the Souring of Milk," is now ready for the 

 press. In it are embodied the results of much work extending over a year, 

 and taken together with two previous bulletins constitute our results upon 

 "Associative Studies." How significant these technical studies are can be 

 measured only by the future; even now, however, it is possible to point 

 out their application with the limited knowledge and very meager experi- 

 mental data at hand. The principal lines of application may be stated as 



(1) the importance of this knowlegde in the production of pure milk for 

 consumption, a broader subject for my personal work for some years past, 



(2) the value in estimating the worth of starters in the making of butter 

 and cheese, (3) saying nothing of the most evident fact, the keeping of milk. 

 These facts are suggested and it is too early to enter into any discussion, 

 for our enthusiasm at present may outweigh our wisdom. 



This work will be continued, especially with the intention of ascertain- 

 ing its practical bearing. 



During the past year, but not really started until the 3^ear was consider- 

 ably advanced, have been conducted by Messrs. Sackett and Clark some 

 experiments in which they purpose to demonstrate the action of micro- 

 organisms in rendering soluble some of the insoluble constituents of the 

 soil. They are nearl}^ ready to publish a preliminary bulletin covering 

 the results of their experiments to this time. Mr. Sackett and Mr. Tuttle 

 expect to continue this line of investigation in the future. 



Besides the above work of Messrs. Sackett and Clark, another field of 

 investigation has been forced upon their attention through the revival of 



