632 Journal of Applied Microscopy. 



Oppler-Boas (24), in 1895, found an organism associated in gastric carcinoma, 

 which is now known as the Oppler-Boas bacillus. 



Straus (25), in 1896, reported that he had cultivated Bacillus coli communis 

 from stomach contents, which, in cultures, produced hydrogen sulphide. This 

 organism, however, had already been isolated previously from this situation by 

 Gillespie. The observations of Straus, therefore, are only of a confirmatory 

 nature. 



Rosenheim (26), in 1896, reported to have found the fungus Oidium albicans 

 in stomach contents. This observation is also only of a confirmatory nature, as 

 the organism had been observed under these conditions at a much earlier date, 

 by Zalensky, in 1864. . 



Hemmeter (loc. cit.), in 1897, wrote that spores of anthrax may lodge in the 

 mucosa and submucosa of the stomach, giving rise to inflammation, ulceration 

 and necrosis. 



From a perusal of the foregoing, it will be seen that though observations on 

 the presence of bacteria in the stomach date back as early as 1842, that since 

 then only three systematic investigations of this subject have been made : 



The first of these by van Puteren, 1888, who isolated nine species, consisting 

 of bacterja and fungi; the second by Abelous, in 1889, who isolated sixteen 

 species; and the third by Gillespie, in 1893, who reported to have isolated from 

 eighteen to twenty-four species. 



It will also be noted that in all the investigations, up to the present time, the 

 bacteria studied were obtained from the stomach contents of healthy or diseased 

 individuals. From a study of these investigations, it must be inferred that the 

 presence of any species of bacteria in the stomach contents of an individual is 

 accidental, and that no single form may be expected to be constantly present 

 under these conditions. 



{To be Continued.) 



Note on the Preparation of Culture Media. 



Any one who has to prepare nutrient gelatin or agar has experienced diffi- 

 culty in preventing these solutions from burning when boiled over a free flame. 

 This difficulty is especially troublesome with gelatin, which frequently burns, no 

 matter how much care is taken to prevent it. For the last three years the writer 

 has been in the habit of boiling all culture media in an agate ware double boiler, 

 the outside chamber of which contains a fifty per cent, filtered solution of com- 

 mercial calcium chlorid. This solution has a boiling point of 112 C. and conse- 

 quently, when boiling, is hot enough to keep the contents of the inner chamber in 

 rapid ebullition. The advantages of this plan are several. Nothing ever burns. 

 The boiling always takes place quietly, no bumping ever occurring, no matter 

 how much solid matter the solution contains. The rate of ebullition is as easily 

 controlled by adjusting the size of the flame as when direct heating is employed. 

 The time required to prepare gelatin and agar by the method recommended by 

 the Bacteriological Committee of the American Public Health Association may 



