58 COD AND OTHER SALT FISH FOR THE MARKET. 



depth from the exposed surfaces of the fish. These pieces were then 

 dipped into hot paraffin and placed in sterilized covered dishes. A 

 portion of the paraffin about an inch square was removed from the 

 surface with a sterilized knife, in order to afford a surface for 

 inoculating. 



There were five pieces inoculated with the coccus, five with the 

 bacillus, five with the coccus and bacillus, and five uninoculated for 

 check purposes. They were kept at about 20 C., and were slow in 

 developing. In thirty-four days the surfaces of those inoculated 

 with the coccus were covered with thin pink streaks. Two of those 

 inoculated with the bacillus had a small transparent colony at the 

 point of inoculation, one had pink streaks, and two had no develop- 

 ment. Those inoculated with the coccus and bacillus had reddened. 

 The checks remained sterile. In fifty-six days there was an increase 

 in the amount of reddening in the pieces inoculated with the coccus. 

 The red growth was viscous, and composed of a mass of cocci em- 

 bedded in mucus, with a few rods of varying short lengths and a few 

 free spores. The transparent colonies on two of those inoculated w r ith 

 the bacillus were not distinguishable from the rest of the fish, but 

 the pink on the streaked piece had increased, it was viscous, and the 

 organisms were in the same proportion as in the coccus-inoculated 

 pieces which it resembled. Those inoculated with the coccus and ba- 

 cillus had a slightly more pronounced development than those in- 

 oculated with the coccus alone, and the organisms were in the same 

 proportion. One of the check pieces had commenced to redden. In 

 this piece the cocci were the predominating organism, but there were: 

 more free spores of the bacilli than in the other pieces. The mol< 

 wa-s absent from all. 



This set of tests was more satisfactory, as a more nearly steril 

 condition of the fish was obtained, though the results indicate tha 

 some of the pieces were not sterile when inoculated. It seems to b 

 evident, however, from this and the preceding tests that the coccul 

 is the organism which produces the reddening. The coccus pre 

 dominated in all, in some only a very few bacilli being present. Als 

 the coccus when isolated and grown on artificial media produces no 

 only the red color, but also the characteristic viscosity. These test 

 proved conclusively that the mold is not necessary for the produc 

 tion of either the reddening or the foul odor, as these pieces ha< 

 both characteristics, but no mold. 



INVOLVEMENT OF TISSUES BY INFECTION. 



Examination of sections of the fish show that the bacterial in fee 

 tion is upon the surface, that the muscular bundles -are not pene 

 trated, but that there may be penetration of the intramuscular con 

 nective tissue to some depth. In all cases, however, in which th 



