ual, Dee 1 170. | PROGRESS OF MICROSCOPICAL SCIENCE. 317 
and gives an excellent drawing showing the whole organization of the 
first. 
Results of the Injection of Parasitic Spores into the Blood of Animals. 
—The interesting discoveries of Haller, Ziirn, Chauveau, and Da- 
vaine, that there is contained in the blood in several contagious 
diseases numerous parasitic growths, known as micrococcus, my- 
cothrix, leptothrix, &c., have stimulated further investigations in this 
comparatively new field, among the more recent of which are those of 
EK. Semmer, Prosector at the Veterinary Institute at Dorpat, reported 
at length in a recent number of Virchow’s ‘ Archiv.’ His experiments 
consisted first in the repeated examinations of the blood of animals 
which had died of contagious diseases, with the view of detecting 
therein any parasitic growths, and his results may be briefly summed 
up as follows :—In cases of glanders, micrococcus-cells and bacteridiz 
are found in the blood, lymph, and pus, in animals which have died 
of this disease. In charbon (malignant vesicle) and septicemia, the 
blood is found to contain numerous micrococcus-cells, and bacteridiz 
(mycothrix and leptothrix), both in the form of simple filaments and 
also arranged together so as to form a chain, the latter growths having 
been long known under different names. That these infusoria, having 
the form of slender cylindrical filaments, really are parasitic growths, 
was proved in the case of five pigs, which had died of septicemia. In 
the blood of these animals, the actual growth of the filaments from the 
micrococcus-cells was demonstrated under the microscope. The bac- 
teridiz seen in cases of charbon are, for the most part, shorter, more 
slender, and have a less distinct outline, than those found in septi- 
cemia, where they vary in length, and consist of a single well-defined 
filament, and are, at the same time, less numerous than in the former 
disease. These filaments, however, are not always of the same form, 
even in charbon, for here also variations are noticed, so that at times 
the parasitic growths in this disease resemble, both in form and size, 
those found in septicemia. These parasites, moreover, are found in 
other diseases characterized by blood-poisoning, and even in the blood 
of some healthy animals a few micrococcus-cells (Penicillium glaucum) 
have been found, and in other cases both leptothrix and micrococcus 
(bacteridiz) have been seen in the liver and intestines. In order next 
to determine whether the contagious diseases above referred to are 
really caused by the parasites found in the blood, the author has tried 
a series of experiments, with the following results : Penicillium-spores, 
of the size of a red-blood corpuscle, were mixed with distilled water, 
and then injected by means of a small subcutaneous syringe into the 
jugular veins of two colts. The animals remained perfectly well, 
however, after the injection. Several weeks later micrococcus-cells 
were injected into the same animals, and here again the injections 
were not followed by any symptoms of disease. Injections of anthro- 
coccus-cells were likewise followed by negative results. A second 
series of injections was next made with large masses of the spores of 
Penicillium glaucum. In these cases slight feverish symptoms were 
created, which soon disappeared, however, and, upon an examination 
of the animals after they had been killed, all the organs and textures 
of the body were found to be quite normal. The author next injected 
