STUDIES ON FERMENTATION. 121 



inclined to believe in tlie transformation of one organism into 

 another — the transformation of mycodernia vini or cerevisuv. into 

 yeast, and that, on that occasion, we were altogether wrong, 

 through having ovirselves fallen a victim to the identical source 

 of error which confidence in our theory of germs had led us so 

 frequently to detect as affecting the observations of others. 



§ III. — Growth of Mycoderma Aceti in a State of Purity. 



The study of mycoderma aceti has not escaped the numerous 

 causes of error which are apt to attend all observations made on 

 microscopic organisms. This little fungus is still believed by 

 many authors to be one of those polymorphous species capable 

 of great modifications, according to the conditions of their culti- 

 vation — it could be, in turns, bacterium, vibrio, yeast, &c. 

 Respecting it, we have seen resuscitated under a modern name, 

 in the course of the last few years, the old hypothesis of Buffon 

 concerning organic molecules, that of Turpin concerning the 

 punctiform globulines of barley, milk, and albumen, and the 

 theory maintained by Dr. Pineau, of Nancy, and by Pouchet 

 concerning proliferous pellicles* 



M. Bechamp, Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at Mont- 

 pellier, disdaining to adopt the expressions which we have just 

 used, has 'substituted for them that of microzyma, whilst 

 adhering to the opinions and errors represented by the other 

 expressions. This savant designates under the name of 

 microzyma all those punctiform globulines thit are met with in 

 most organic liquids when submitted to the microscope ; and 

 attributes to them, with Turpin, the faculty of playing the part 

 of ferments, as well as of transforming themselves into yeast 



* Buffon, Histoire de V Homme, i. viii., edition 12uio, 1778; Turpin, 

 Ilemoires de VAcademie des Sciences, t. xvii. ; Dr. PiNEAU, Annahs des 

 Sciences Naturelles, t. iii., 1845 ; Pouchet, Traite de la Oeneration dite 

 Spontanee, p. 335, 1859. See also our Memoire sur les Oenerations dites 

 Sponianees, 1862, pp. 100 and following, in which, we give a restime of 

 some of these theories. 



