and Laboratory Methods. 1143 



If the serous exudations of a suspected individual produce an agglutination, it 

 indicates the presence of the disease. The absence of the reaction, however, 

 does not necessarily indicate the absence of the disease, for advanced cases 

 produce no reaction. The agglutinative power of the serai exudations is greater 

 than that of the blood of the same animal, and, hence, the author concludes that 

 the power of agglutination is developed in the exudatio-ns, and are not simply a 

 phenomenon transferred from the blood. h. w. c. 



Rogers. Schutzimpfung gegen Rinderpest. The experiments here mentioned 



Zeit. f. Hyg. u. Infek. 21 : SQ, iQOO. i -i i • r • ^- i.- 



•"' j^?' ^' describe a long series of investigations 



upon the value of the method of inoculating against rinderpest. The author 

 experiments not only with the method of Koch, but with two or three other 

 methods that have recently been devised. His general conclusion is that inocu- 

 lation by the gall method produces an immunity in cattle against this disease, 

 but that the immunity is quite fleeting, lasting only about four months. He finds, 

 further, that different classes of cattle behave quite differently towards this 

 inoculating test. Mountain cattle and lowland cattle are very different in their 

 sensitiveness to immunization and to the disease. The former are not easily 

 immunized by the gall method. Of the several methods used the author believes 

 that some are best for certain breeds of cattle, and others for other breeds of 

 cattle. The paper hardly admits of summary. h. w. c. 



Saul. Beitriige zur Morphologie des Staphy- This paper consists of a somewhat 

 lococcus albus. Bed. Klin. Woch, p. 1058. unique study of the gelatin colonies of 

 ^ ■ this well known organism. The author 



makes his studies in gelatin plates inoculated in such a way that each plate con- 

 tained only one or two colonies, and preserved under conditions to retain their 

 moisture so that the colonies could continue growing for months. The gelatin, 

 with the contained colony, was hardened and sectioned, and careful studies made 

 of the sections. Some excellent figures are given of the colonies. The impor- 

 tant conclusion is that the colonies are not simply irregular aggregates of cells, 

 but appear to be units, and should be regarded, therefore, rather as " cell states " 

 than as irregular aggregations. The colonies, though varying widely in form, 

 are always reducible to a fundamental type which appears to be based upon the 

 principle of dichotomous branching. h. w. c. 



Trommsdorff. Ueber Gewohnung von Bak- The evidence for a germicidal action of 

 terien an Alexin. Arch. f. Hyg. 39: ^i, , 1 1 i 11 11 1 



jQQQ -^ freshly drawn blood has been, in recent 



years, subject to criticism. It has been 

 pointed out that micro-organisms, when transferred from one medium to another, 

 commonly suffer some injurious influence, and for a time fail to increase, — or 

 may even decrease. It has been suggested, therefore, that diminution of bacteria 

 in freshly drawn blood is due to the change from bouillon culture to blood, and 

 not to any poisonous alexin. The author tests this theory by cultivating the 

 typhoid cholera bacteria in the blood and serum of animals whose blood is inac- 

 tive by heat at 56° for one hour. After cultivation in this inactive blood the 

 bacteria are inoculated in active blood, and are found to be just as rapidly killed 



