BACTEKIOLOCY OF REDDENED COD. 47 



Cold checks the growth of the organisms causing the reddening, 

 and in addition it also has the effect of bleaching the color which may 

 present. In some of the experimental lots, fish which had become 

 ]uite red in the fall appeared white in the spring after having been 

 exposed to the low temperature of the winter. A short exposure to 

 leat was sufficient to establish new growth and to restore the color. 



The coloration of the cod varies in appearance, sometimes being 



f a pale pink color, at other times a bright red. The pink is caused 



by the germs being in a thin layer on very moist fish; the more in- 



ense color appears when the fish is drier and the germs form thicker 



-pots or a series of colonies. The germs have a moister and more oily 



ippearance in the latter stage. Both conditions may appear on the 



ame fish. The redness occurs on any part of the fish, the skin as 



veil as the flesh, though it is not so readily seen nor developed on the 



kin. The infection, so far as known, occurs on the salted fish only, 



mt this may be due to the slowness of development and the fact that 



he fresh fish are not kept sufficiently long for the color to appear; it 



may be present in the incipient stage, since the germs were found in 



he water which is used to wash the fresh fish. 



DESCRIPTION OF ORGANISMS. 



There were many different lots of red fish examined, die material 

 joing taken from various infected spots on each. Some of them were 

 examined in Lafayette, Ind., during June and July, the fish being 

 hipped from Gloucester; some during August and September in the 

 'actories in Gloucester; and still others were examined in Lafay- 

 tte, Ind., during the winter months, the fish with one exception being 

 Torn Gloucester. The exception was a piece of red fish from Califor- 

 lia, received in January. The salt used by the packers and obtained 

 rom different places in and around the factories was examined, as 

 vere also scrapings from the woodwork and scum from the top of the 

 jrine in the butts. 



In nearly all the cases cited there were three organisms found *., 

 :occus, a bacillus, and the cells of a mold-like fungus; in the excep- 

 ions the bacilli were sometimes absent, sometimes the mold cells, and 

 n a few cases both of these organisms. Of 34 examinations, in which 

 'ecord was made of the predominating organism, the coccus predomi- 

 lated in 10, the bacillus in 4, and the mold cells in 2 ; in the remain- 

 ng 18 the three organisms were present and seemingly in equal num- 

 >ers. The pieces examined were of varying degrees of redness, and 

 hose in which the mold cells predominated had the typical red color. 

 Where the mold grows apparently alone there are brow r n spots formed 

 hat are wholly distinct in appearance from the reddening. 



In obtaining samples for examination the red growth is found to 

 je very viscous, the matt-rial drawing out in fine threads from the 



