920 ON THE EXAMINATION OF WATER FROM THE SYDNEY SUPPLY, 



micro-organism vegetates more quickly, liquefying the gelatine from 

 above downwards, and forming at the bottom of the liquefied mass 

 a dense ochre-yellow deposit. 



On an inclined surface of nutrient gelatine in test-tubes it 

 multiplies very readily, spreading laterally from the streak of the 

 inoculation in a thin greyish-white film over the surface of the 

 gelatine. On examination with a pocket-lens the edges of the 

 growth are found to be lined with minute fringe-like processes, and, 

 here and there, more or less elongated acuminate offshoots are seen 

 which consist of an aggregation of minute, undulatory fibres, and 

 are arranged, on each side, parallel to one another, running 

 obliquely from below upwards, to the right and to the left 

 respectively. The gelatine soon liquefies, first in a longitudinal, 

 middle channel, carrying down with it to the bottom of the glass 

 tube, the bacterial vegetation of these spots, and depositing it 

 there as an orange-yellow dense flocky and rather tenacious mass. 

 The liquefaction proceeds laterally till, after some time and at 

 ordinary temperature, the test-tube is filled with one liquid mass. 

 Besides the superficial growth, as observed in the gelatine-tube, 

 of this bacillus, there exists, as long as the gelatine is solid, some 

 inner vegetation, that is, from the gelatine-surface delicate, cloud- 

 like, filamentous masses take their way into the solid gelatine iD a 

 parallel arrangement and in nearly a horizontal direction. 



On a sloping surface of nutrient agar-agar this bacterium forms 

 an ochre-yellow superficial layer with glistening even surface, and 

 a narrow, thin, transparent, undulating border. 



This species appeared now and then on the plates, but never 



copiously, fourteen colonies at one time being the largest number 



found (PI. XI, fig. 2.) 



Bacillus D. 



Microscopical Characters. Cylindrical, straight or sometimes 

 slightly curved rods, of from -004- -009 mm. in length, and about 

 •0017 mm. in width ; occur singly, in twos, or in chains or filaments; 

 extremities rounded off; with slosv, seemingly pendulum-like, or 

 slowly gliding, spontaneous movements ; contents of the rods 

 homogeneous. 



