17 



rice was stirred up in distilled water which became pink even when 20 

 to 30 c. c. was used with the contents of but one test-tube culture. This 

 fluid was strongly acid to litmus. On tilteriug it through tissue paper 

 it was colorless. On boiling it gave oli' a pleasant aromatic odor and 

 litmus paper held in the steam was reddened. Most of the acidity 

 passed away on boiling. The color of the uufiltered fluid changed from 

 pink to purple on boiling in a sterile test tube. There was no change 

 of color with 1 per cent chromic acid. 



Six rice cultures were now instituted in test tubes as follows, each, 

 with one exception, holding about the same quantity of tlie cooked 

 rice: (1) llice with 1' drops of saturated solution of sodium carbonate; 

 (2) rice with 3 drops of the soda solution; (3) rice with 5 drops of one- 

 half per cent solution of hydrochloric acid; (4) rice with 10 drops of 

 this acid water; (5) rice made blue with 2 c. c. of violet litmus solution; 

 (G) rice made blue by 2 c. c. of violet litmus solution and 2 drops of 

 saturated solution of sodium carbonate. These tubes were all inocu- 

 lated in the same way, from one of the crimson rice tubes just described, 

 and were under the same cultnral conditions. They will be described 

 by number. In 2 days most of the mycelium in 1 was snow-white, but 

 there was a slight purpling around two rice grains; in 2, which diflered 

 from the others in having only about two-thirds as much rice and was, 

 therefore, nearly twice as alkaline as 1, the fungus was growing rather 

 slower and was i»ure white throughout; in 3 there was a decided pur- 

 pling of most of the fungus and of the rice grains which were touched 

 by it; 4 was like 3; in 5, that part of the fungus projecting into the air 

 was pure white, but the blue rice grains in the vicinity of the growing 

 fungus had become bright purple; in G there was also some purpling 

 of the rice grains attacked, but it was more restricted, and, as in 5, the 

 bulk of the rice was bright blue. On the 6th day the condition was as 

 follows: 1, fungus has made a good growth and some of it is pale 

 purple to light rose, but there is not one-tenth as much color as in the 

 tubes which received the acid; 2, the fungus has grown much within 

 the last few days, but there has been no corresponding increase of the 

 color, which is now a faint, scarcely noticeable rose or purple, i. e., there 

 is not one-hundredth j)art as much color as in the acid tubes; 3 and 

 4, very brilliant and beautifal, the prevailing color, crimson, shading 

 into rose and purple, but where the fungus x)rojects above the culture 

 into the air it is pure white, or shows only the faintest tinge of pale 

 rose; 5, the upper one-half of the tube is tilled with a copious growth 

 of the fungus, and most of the blue color has disappeared, being- 

 changed below into violet and above into rose color, and brilliant 

 purples and crimsons, but that part of the fungus which grows into the 

 air above the culture is white to faint rose; G, like 5, except that tne 

 lower one-half of the rice is still a pure blue. On the 9th day tubes 1 

 and 2 oifered a striking contrast to 3 and 4. In tube 1 the fungus was 

 becoming quite roseate over large areas, but none was crimson or 

 4133— Ko. 17 2 



