382 PATHOGENIC BACTERIA. 



when fresh brain or spinal cord was rubbed up in a mor- 

 tar with physiological salt solution, and injected into ani- 

 mals, the mixture had the power not only to confer upon 

 them an immunity lasting for twenty-four hours, but also 

 was potent enough to neutralize the effects of an injec- 

 tion of tetanus toxin ten times as large as that necessary 

 to kill the animal in doses of 1 c.cm. 



These observations may offer a possible solution of the 

 difficult problem laid before us by Montesano and Mon- 

 tesson/ who unexpectedly found the tetanus bacillus in 

 pure culture in the cerebro-spinal fluid of a case of para- 

 lytic dementia that died without a tetanic symptom. 



A peculiar method of administering tetanus antitoxin 

 was suggested by Chauffard and Ouenu, 2 who injected it 

 into the cerebral substance and found such administra- 

 tion to bring about apparent cure in one case. 



Bacilli Resembling the Tetanus Bacillus. — 

 Tavel 3 has called attention to a bacillus commonly found 

 in the intestine, sometimes in large numbers in the ap- 

 pendix in cases of appendicitis, and looked upon by one of 

 his colleagues, Fraulein Dr. von Mayer, as the probable 

 common cause of appendicitis. He calls it the " Pseudo- 

 tetanusbacillus. " 



The bacillus is slender and measures 0.5 X 5-7 //. It 

 is rather more slender than the tetanus bacillus. Its 

 spores are oval, situated at the end of the rod, and cause 

 a slight bulging rather pointed at the end. The bacillus 

 is provided with not more than a dozen flagella, usually 

 only four to eight, thus differing markedly from the tetanus 

 bacillus, which has many cilia. The flagella are easily 

 stained by Loffler's method without the addition of acid 

 or alkali. The organism does not stain as well by Gram's 

 method as the true tetanus bacillus. 



The growth in bouillon is rather more rapid than that 

 of the tetanus bacillus. It will not grow in gelatin. The 



1 Centralbl.f. Bakt., u. Parasitenk., Dec, 1897, Bd. xxii., Nos. 22, 23, p. 663. 



2 Presse mid., No. 5, 1898. 



3 Centralbl.f. Bakt. etc., Mar. 31, 1898, xxiii., No. 13, p. 538. 



