"GROUSE DISEASE "—PATHOLOGY 281 



opportunity of producing colonies on the surface of the medium. In the case 

 of nine birds (Nos. 20-28) anaerobic cultures were also made in Buchner 

 tubes from all the organs, but as they did not yield anything more than 

 the ordinary cultures, such cultures were not made in the later experiments. 

 Control agar plates were exposed on the bench, and in the glass frame, 

 during the whole of these manipulations. 



The cultures were incubated at 37° C. and examined daily on the first 

 few days, and subsequently at various intervals up to a fortnight. Colonies 

 of Bacillus coli or Streptococci seldom appeared after twenty-four to 



^ ^ '■ Examm- 



forty-eight hours' cultivation, except when they grew out of one of atiouof 

 the larger masses of tissue on the surface of the tube. The prmcipal 

 result of allowing the cultures to incubate for longer periods was to reveal 

 the presence of moulds and streptothrices, and occasional spore-bearing bacilli 

 and cocci in cultures from the lungs. 



The examination of the agar plates, exposed on the bench and within 

 the glass frame during the progress of the experiments, showed that in 

 spite of the long exposure very few colonies grew on them. Bacillus coli 

 was never found, and moulds and streptothrices were uncommon. The 

 commonest organisms were Sai'cina lutea and cocci. 



All organisms resembling Bacillus coli were isolated in pure culture, 

 and the characters of their growth on agar, gelatine, and potato investi- 

 gated, together with their staining reactions and motility. They identifi- 

 were also cultivated up to fourteen days in milk, and in peptone t°he'organ- 

 water tubes containing glucose, lactose, mannite, saccharose, and '^™^ found, 

 dulcite. 



Altogether thirty-five lactose fermenting organisms of the colon group 

 were isolated from the organs of the birds and thoroughly investigated. All 

 these organisms had the following characters in common : — Short, gram 

 negative, non-spore-bearing bacilli with rounded ends. Greyish-white colonies 

 on agar, gelatine never liquefied. Moist white or cream coloured growth on 

 potato. Permanent acidity and clotting in milk. Most of them produced 

 indol, and the majority showed some motility, especially in peptone water 

 cultures. 



Following MacConkey's' (1905) classification of the lactose fermenting 



1 A. MacConkey (1905). "Lactose-fermenting bacteria in Fseces," Journ. of Hygient, v. p. 333. 



