BACILLUS A NTH R ACTS. 



301 



mine, or picrocarmine and Gram. The spores are stained as 

 previously described. Owing to their size and affinity for 

 stains, these spores are specially adapted for the study of 

 sporulation. Bacilli have been described that do not sporu- 

 late. 



The anthrax bacillus is easily cultivated on all kinds of 

 media and between a temperature of 14 and 43 C. The 

 temperature of the body is most conducive to sporulatioi< 



FIG. 135. 



Colonies of Bacillus anthracis upon gelatin plates, a, at the end of twenty-four 

 hours ; b, at the end of forty-eight hours. X 80. (F. Fluegge.) 



The colonies on gelatin plates are absolutely characteristic. 

 Within twenty-four hours opaque grayish colonies develop 

 (Fig. 135). The border of the colony is extremely irregular 

 and much lighter in color than the centre. As the colony 

 increases in age the irregularity of the border becomes more 

 marked until the colony finally has the appearance of a badly 

 snarled mass of threads. The gelatin is slightly liquefied. 

 The colonies are examined with a low-power lens or by mak- 

 ing a Klatsch preparation. They are very large when fully 

 developed. 



