MICROPHYTES FOUND IN THE BLOOD. 387 



to be found in their blood, in the spleen, and in other organs. 

 On one occasion the rapid appearance of organisms after death 

 was exemplified in a somewhat remarkable manner, and possibly 

 the mode of death was not without some influence in determining 

 their exceptionally early and plentiful appearance. 



The man employed to procure the rats determined that he 

 would get a sufficient number to last for some time, and pro- 

 ceeded to a large granary with his rat traps. Having, however, 

 found that he could procure more than could be accommodated 

 in the cage which he had brought with him, he obtained a large 

 earthen vessel, transferred twenty-seven rats into it, and tied a 

 piece of cloth over the mouth of the vessel. As may be sup- 

 posed, the rats had perished before he got home — all except 

 one. 



I examined the blood and the spleen of twenty of these rats 

 within about six to eight hours of their having been caught, and 

 found in each case that there were innumerable bacilli present, 

 in every way morphologically identical with Bacillus anthracu. 

 In some of the cases the number was astonishing. They were 

 present chiefly in the form of rods, but here and there some were 

 seen to have grown to such a length as to cover two fields of the 

 microscope. 



This experience tends to give support to the statement made 

 by M. Signol before the French Academy, to the effect that 

 motionless bacilli, identical with those found in charbon, will be 

 found in sixteen hours or less after death in the blood of animals 

 which have been asphyxiated by means of a charcoal fire. M. 

 Signol, moreover, found that eighty drops of this blood would 

 kill a goat or a sheep very rapidly, notwithstanding that putridity 

 could not be detected, so far as appearance and odour went; but 

 that bacilli would not be found in the blood of the inoculated 

 animals, either before or immediately after death.^ 



It has been urged that the microphytes which appear in the 

 blood after death simply make their way into it from the intestinal 

 canal as a result of the breaking down of the tissues. This ob- 

 jection is certainly no longer tenable, for many observers have 

 shown that if some of the organs be removed from the body 

 immediately after death, or, indeed, isolated from the circulation 

 whilst the animal is still alive and under the influence of chloro- 

 form, these organisms will nevertheless appear if the preparation 

 be kept for some hours at a suitable temperature. 



Some of the specimens of blood which furnished several of the 



preparations about to be described were obtained in this raaiuier. 



Rats, mice, kittens, &c., were placed under chloroform, and either 



killed and placed on one side for some hours; or, whilst still 



1 ' Comptes Rendus,' t, Ixxxi, p. 1116, December, 1S75. 



