FUSIFORM BACILLI OF VINCENT'S ANGINA 367 



be included, examinations being repeated on 4 of the cases, and 

 three examinations being done on the other case. In 17 examina- 

 tions, 2 standard methods of staining were used on each, the old 

 long method (one minute carbol gentian violet, two minutes 

 Gram's iodine, five minutes alcohol, one minute safranin) and 

 the newer shorter method (fifteen seconds' gentian violet, washing 

 off twice with Gram's iodine, fifteen seconds' washing with alcohol, 

 one minute safranin) . Of the other 7 examinations, the short 

 method was used on 6, the long method on the other. Of the 

 18 cases, smears were taken in 14 from lesions of the throat or 

 tonsils, in 4 from lesions of the gums. 



O f the 24 examinations, the bacilli were found to be markedly 

 more numerous than the spirilla in 17, while the spirilla were 

 equal in number or more numerous in 7. In the cases where 

 examinations were repeated, these relations remained constant 

 in 4, while in the other case the bacilli were first more numerous 

 than the spirilla, and five days later the spirilla were found to be 

 more numerous. 



The staining qualities were found to vary markedly with both 

 methods. In the main, the two methods checked, Though in 

 some examinations a larger number of bacilli were Gram-positive 

 by one than by the other method, a majority usually stained in the 

 same way by both methods, in any smear. There was sufficiently 

 marked disagreement to make it questionable which were most 

 numerous in only three examinations. As a check on the meth- 

 ods, it was noted that the streptococci nearly always present in 

 the same smears were always markedly Gram-positive, while 

 the spirillae were invariably Gram-negative by both methods. 



Of the 24 examinations, in 12 over half the bacilli were Gram- 

 positive by one or both methods. In 9 over half were Gram- 

 negative. In 3 others, there was disagreement, 2 showing a 

 majority Gram-positive by the short and Gram-negative by the 

 long methods, while 1 showed the reverse relations. Of the 17 

 in which both methods were used, 7 showed a majority Gram- 

 positive by both methods, 7 a majority Gram-negative by both, 

 while in 3 there was the disagreement noted above. In the 5 

 cases where repeated examinations were done, the staining 



