— 
( 675 ) 
nearly in pure culture; this species stands no transplantation to 
the same medium; after sowing out on broth agar with 2 °/, glucose, 
white or greyish white colonies result of 2—6 u long rodlets, 1 u 
wide. The spores resist boiling heat, gelatin is liquefied, diastase and 
lipase are secreted. 
In a medium with mineral salts to which glucose, saccharose, glycerin, 
ealciumlactate or amylum have been added, a good growth results after 
inoculation. Addition of peptone as source of nitrogen gives much 
stronger growth than ammonium chloratum. Stearinacid salts are not 
assimilated. The culture on slices of potato reminds of that of B. mesen- 
tericus on this medium, but the colour of the colony is whiter. 
This microbe belongs to the group of hay bacteria and is distin- 
guished by its lipase production ; B. mesentericus, B. subtilis and B. 
meyaterium isolated from potatoes do not secrete lipase. 
Anaérobic culture. Under anaërobie conditions no growth of fat- 
splitting microbes occurs in a medium containing only fat as source 
of carbon and ammonium chloratum as source of nitrogen. 
B. Denitrification with fats. 
In our researches on denitrification with fats no other source of 
carbon was present in the medium composed of 100 tapwater, 1 
kaliumnitrate, 0,05 bikaliumphosphate. 
The culture was arranged as follows: about a gram of fat was 
melted in a carefully dried stoppered bottle with narrow mounth of 
+ 250 ¢.c. capacity; by turning the fat is evenly distributed over 
the inner surface. After cooling the bottle is filled with the said 
nutrient liquid which is subsequently inoculated with garden soil or 
some other infection material. 
A series of experiments at temperatures between 20° and 45° C. 
proved that at 27°—30° C. the strongest denitrification was brought 
about; at this temperature the subsequent researches have been made. 
If we inoculate with 38 grams of garden soil, sewage- or canal 
mud and cultivate at + 28°, we see after one or two days the top- 
most edge of the fat layer near the stopper grow white. From here 
the decoloration proceeds to the bottom of the bottle. Soon gas bubbles 
arise from the inner wall of the fat layer, then they also form between 
the fat and the glass wall, by which the fat is separated from 
the glass. After 5 or 6 days we usually see the pieces of fat partly 
lying at the bottom. The fat, at first rather transparent, grows white, 
then dirty yellow and quite opaque. The culture liquid, partly 
pressed out of the bottle, is turbid and dirty yellow. Transplantations 
