FUSIFORM BACILLI OF VINCENT'S ANGINA 369 



In one post-mortem an organism was found which from its 

 source and morphology must be considered as at least very closely 

 allied to the bacillus of Vincent. The case was one of death 

 from broncho-pneumonia following a large abscess of the jaw 

 directly continuous with the root of an ulcerated tooth. Smears 

 from the ulcerated area, the abscess, the larynx, the large and 

 small bronchi, all showed a profusion of fusiform bacilli, morpho- 

 logically indistinguishable from those found in Vincent's Angina. 

 A few ordinary pyogenic cocci were found in the smears but the 

 bacillus was the predominant organism. No spirilla were found 

 in any smears and none of the spore-bearing bacilli to be described. 

 In the direct smears, about half the fusiforms were Gram-posi- 

 tive and half Gram-negative. 



In all the aerobic broth cultures from these regions a few 

 fusiform bacilli were found; in some a fairly large number. All 

 showed also many cocci, which proved to be Streptococcus 

 viridans and a hemolytic staphylococcus. In a culture from the 

 larynx made on Loeffler's blood serum, the largest number of 

 fusiform bacilli were found, and the fusiforms had greatly in- 

 creased, relatively to the cocci, after five to six days. Aerobic 

 plates made from this culture showed in twenty-four hours large 

 numbers of peculiar small dew-drop colonies with moist, spread- 

 ing edges. Second plates from these colonies gave nothing but 

 such colonies appearing like pure cultures. Smears from well 

 isolated colonies, however, while they showed many fusiform 

 bacilli, showed also a club shaped, Gram-positive spore-bearer. 

 On referring back to the original Loeffler's tube a few of these 

 spore-bearers were also found. Cultures from these colonies 

 in aerobic and anaerobic meat-broth and plain broth showed at 

 first nothing but fusiform bacilli, but later in all these cultures, 

 spore-bearers developed. One culture after sixteen days showed 

 only a very few spore-bearers and many perfectly typical fusiform 

 bacilli. Transfers back on plates gave the same colonies with 

 the same mixture of fusiforms and spore-bearers. These transfers 

 from liquid media to plates and back again were repeated as far 

 as the seventh generation with the same results. Orders to the 

 states interrupted the work before the fusiform bacillus could 



