GENERAL SYSTEMATIC BACTERIOLOGY 205 



all included in one genus the simplicity is more apparent than real. 

 The existence of such diverse forms has led most recent authors to 

 arrange bacteria into well marked groups. It is the opinion of the 

 author that the larger groups should be recognized as genera. The term 

 Bacillus should therefore be restricted. It would seem that it should be 

 defined more nearly in the terms of De Bary, Zopf, Hueppe, etc., who 

 emphasized the importance of spore production as a diagnostic character. 



Objection may be raised that a definition of Bncillus as a genus made 

 up of endosporous rods would exclude forms which have lost the power 

 of spore formation but are in other respects closely related. It is evi- 

 dently impracticable to base generic diagnoses upon a single character. 

 Even though an organism be a variant in one or even more characters, 

 the other resemblances would be sufficient to include the organism in 

 question in the correct genus. Illustrations of this fact may be taken 

 from higher plants. The Lombardy poplar is always classified in the 

 genus Populus. It never produces fruit; it persists solely as the result 

 of vegetative multiplication. Yet the genus Populus is based in part 

 upon certain fruit characters. The other characters are so evidently 

 poplar-like, however, that we do not question the correctness of the 

 assignment of this species to the genus Populus. 



Bactereae. A name given to the fourth tribe of the Bacteriaceae 

 by Winslow et al. (Committee Soc. Am. Bact., 1910, p. 210). It is 

 evidently a typographic error for Bacterieae q.v. This spelling is also 

 used by Bergey et al. (1923, p. 194). 



Bacteria. A group name frequently used by authors as synonymous 

 with Sclnzomycetes. Hansgirg (1888, p. 299) gave the two as synonyms. 

 Migula used this name with the following diagnosis : 



Phycochromfreie Spaltpilzen mit Teilung nach ein, zwei oder drei Richtungen 

 des Raumes. Viele Arten besetzen Endosporenbildung. Wo Beweglichkeit der 

 Zellen vorhanden ist, wird dieselbe durch geisselartige Bewegungsorgane, sel- 

 tener durch undulierende Membranen (Uebergang zu den Phycochromaceen) 

 vermittelt. 



The name in this general sense has been used by many writers. 

 Heller (1912, p. 449) proposes this as the name of a phylum. 



Bacteriaceae. Cohn (1872a, p. 237) under the description of Micro- 

 sphaera uses the expression "Gruppe der Bacteriaceae." Cohn (1872b) 

 says 



Den gemeinschaftliche Charakter der von mir hier als Bacterien zusammenge- 

 fassten Organismen scheint nur in Folgen dem zu liegen: Die Bacterien sind 



