1894.] MICROSCOPICAL JOURNAL. 273 



mixed some of the smegma with 500 c.c. of healthy 

 urine, and let it stand for 24 hours, then examined the 

 sediment in a like manner. The result is the same as 

 pure smegma, except the bacilli are less curved and con- 

 siderably shrunken so they look more like tubercle 

 bacilli than before mixing with the urine. It seems to 

 me very important to know this fact, especially those 

 who use a microscope must remember that there is an or- 

 ganism other than tubercle bacillus which resists the ac- 

 tion of an acid and retains its fuchsin stain. This is 

 specially important- in examining urinary sediments for 

 tubercle bacillus. I have already stated that the size 

 and shape of smegma bacillus are different from that of 

 tubercle bacillus to the eyes of those who are familiar 

 with the morphology of the latter, but in the case of 

 doubt stain it by the Gram's method as the former takes 

 the stain very promptly, while the latter takes it very 

 feebly and the protoplasm of the rods is contracted into 

 a series of spherical, stained bodies resembling a num- 

 ber of micrococci. 



The Meeting of the American Microscopical Society at 

 Brooklyn, N. Y. 



By W. H. SEAMAN, SECRETARY, 



WASHINGTON, D. C. 



The Seventeenth Annual Meeting of the American Mi- 

 croscopical Society was held at Brooklyn on August 13, 

 14, and 15 in the Polytechnic Institute. In common 

 with some of the other scientific societies which met at 

 the same time and place the first day was not very suc- 

 cessful. The President did not arrive till the afternoon 

 and it seemed as if very few of the local microscopists 

 took any interest in the meetings. 



The second and third days were very satisfactory, the 

 attendance being quite as large as last year and the char- 

 acter of the papers excellent. 



