PARATYPHOIDBACILLUS FROM URINE OF A CARRIER 



505 



The tests show with certainty that the atypical strain is a real 

 paratyphoid strain. Injected into a rabbit it has caused the 

 production of a serum that agglutinates two quite typical para- 

 typhoid strains: and after absorption of two sera with typical 

 strains the titre of agglutination is lowered practically to the 

 same degree in all these three strains. The tests show however 

 that the new strain is much slower in its agglutinating reaction 

 than either of the two typical strains. In all tests the former 

 required forty-eight hours to reach its maximum of agglutination, 

 while this is reached in about twenty-four or even in two hours 

 by the typical ones. Consequently the atypical strain is not 

 less agglutinable than the typical ones, but is slower in respond- 

 ing. This will, however, in practice amount to the same thing, 

 because a strain that does not show an agglutination test in a 

 given time on isolation, especially if this happens in a strain with 

 quite atypical colonies, will be set aside as not being paratyphoid, 

 and thus a carrier will not be discovered. 



After having shown that the atypical strain is a real paraty- 

 phoid strain, we will have to answer the question, why it shows 

 this peculiar growth. It will already be observed that there are 

 several characters about this strain that point to a special group 

 of microbes, namely the capsule-producing bacteria. The Bad. 

 pneumoniae of Friedlaender, for instance, produces such large, 



