ORGANISMS OF SANITARY SIGNIFICANCE ON GRAINS 219 



tine of man or on the developing flower or seed of a plant, especially 

 one in which sugar storage takes place abundantly as in the grains. 



SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS. 



As a result of the comparative investigations which have just 

 been described, we have succeeded in establishing a specific agree- 

 ment between the organisms corresponding to the graminal B. coli 

 and Strept. pyo genes and the intestinal B. coli and Strept. pyo genes 

 in the following ways: (i) in the cultural reactions; (2) in the 

 morphological and biological characteristics; (3) in the fermen- 

 tative powers and for the colon-like forms; (4) in the pathogenic 

 properties. 



The evidence is so positive and so complete as to lead to the con- 

 clusion that the identity of these so-called groups is absolute. 



It would seem as if the study of the distribution of these germs 

 had hitherto been neglected in much the same way as was, until 

 recently, the case with the tetanus bacillus as well, with one marked 

 difference. The latter has always been thought to be an inhabitant 

 of garden earth, and out of its normal environment when in the 

 human body. Now it has been found to be always present in the 

 fecal discharges of many ruminants, 26 and we come to the question: 

 Which is the normal environment the earth, the animal body, 

 or both? The colon bacillus, on the contrary, has always been 

 considered the typical intestinal bacillus, and abnormal elsewhere. 

 Our work has led us to suppose that it is normally present either 

 in or on many vegetable tissues, and we are inclined to believe that 

 investigators who have reported B. coli in vegetable tissues have 

 not necessarily found germs of immediate intestinal origin, as gen- 

 erally suggested, but simply were not aware of its wide distribution. 



The results obtained in this investigation possess considerable 

 interest from both the theoretical and the practical standpoints. 

 Naturally, question first arises as to their origin. Have these organ- 

 isms been transported through the air as dust, or carried by insects 

 contaminated with animal excrement, and thus gained access to 

 the grain ? Assuming this to be the case, it is difficult to explain 

 the numbers and persistence of these forms on grain far removed 

 from contaminating materials in unfertilized fields. While admit- 



