474 Transactions of the Canadian Institute. [Vol. VII. 



Determination 2. 



Fore-milk, right front teat 48,000 per c.c. 



" " hind " 24,080 " 



" left front " 22,400 " 



" " hind " 35,100 



Cow No. 2. Determination i. 



Fore-milk 200-500 per c.c. 



After-milk o- 1 00 " 



The results of a large number of determinations, of which the above 

 are typical, showed on an average 25-50,000 germs per c.c. in the fore- 

 milk. The numbers in the strippings or after-milk varied greatly with 

 the manner of taking. For example, when the milking was done 

 quickly, but very few and sometimes no colonies were found in the 

 " strippings," whereas, when the milking was done slowly and some time 

 lost before the samples from the last milk were taken; the number of 

 bacteria was very variable, being in one case as high as 57,000. 



The important point, therefore, is not the exact number, but the 

 fact that bacteria were found in large numbers, not only in the fore, but 

 in the middle and last milk of nearly all the cows tested. 



The number of species present in the udders of cows is very small. 

 Of this number some are more or less constantly present, whereas others 

 are very variable in their presence. Of those species which are present, 

 the characters are in many cases so slightly marked that their identifi- 

 cation proved a very difficult matter. In fact, with the exception of 

 Bacillus acidi lactici, not a single species discovered was strongly 

 characterized. A number had a very little or no effect upon milk, and 

 even the digestors were in every case very slow digesters. 



B. acidi lactici (Conn No. 206), B. acidi lactici (Conn 202), and B. 

 lactis aerobans (Conn 197.) are the only ones that have been found con- 

 stantly present in the samples, and in every case they have composed at 

 least 95 per cent, of the germs present. The following species have 

 been only more or less variably present, and in no cases have been 

 found in large numbers. 



B. halofaciens (N. Sp.). This bacterium approaches in characteris- 

 tics Bact. annulatum (Wright), but differs from it in several details, so 

 that we do not hesitate to call it a new species. The name refers to the 

 characteristic halo found in gelatin cultures. As this bacterium was of 

 quite frequent occurrence, we made butter from cream ripened with a 

 culture of it, and found that the flavour of the butter, while not strong 

 was quite disagreeable. At the same time, its presence in relatively 



