‘ 
Makc# 1, 1901.] 
kind of action. Their conclusions are: (1) 
Silage can be made under conditions that 
exclude bacterial activity. (2) The initial 
heating of the silage is due, mainly, to the 
respiratory processes of the cut plant tissues. 
(8) The peculiar characteristic of good 
silage is due, not to bacteria, but to changes 
inaugurated under the more or less direct 
control of the activity of the protoplasm of 
the plant tissues. Theacids of silage seem 
to be for the most part a product of the in- 
tra-molecular respiration, and in quantity 
are roughly proportional to the length of 
time that ensues before the cells stop respir- 
ing. This fact explains the reason that 
silage from immature corn has a higher 
acidity, andis more likely to undergo putre- 
factive changes due to bacteria growing in 
the succulent tissues than silage made from 
maturecorn. (4) The aroma of.good silage 
ean be produced under conditions in which 
all vital processes are suspended. This 
seems to point strongly to the idea that 
enzymes are operative in the production of 
this aroma. It has previously been shown 
that such ferment bodies are liberated from 
dying vegetable cells and that they con- 
tinue toactafter the cells lose their vitality. 
Demonstration of some New Laboratory Devices : 
F. P. Gorman, Providence, R. I. 
The following laboratory devices were 
demonstrated: (1) The application of the 
incandescent electric lamp to heating in- 
cubators, water and paraffin baths. (2) Cul- 
ture tubes with etched surface for writing 
data. (8) Large slides for the examination 
of series of cultures. (4) Cotton ‘silver’ for 
plugging tubes, ete. 
A Low Temperature Incubator: E. H. Wr1tson, 
Brooklyn, N. Y. (Read by title. ) 
Preservation of Sputum for Microscopic Exami- 
nation; A New Fermentation Tube: A. 
Ropin, Newark, Del. 
The author has experimented with some 
of the active germicides with a view to pre- 
SCIENCE. 
329 
serving tuberculosis sputum. Carbolic acid, 
5-per-cent. solution ; trikresol, 2-per-cent.; 
formaldehyde, 5-per-cent., and hydrochloric 
acid, 10-per-cent., were added to sputum 
containing large numbers of tubercle bacilli. 
The coagulation resulting from the addition 
of carbolie acid or trikresol to sputum con- 
taining pus was largely overcome by vigor- 
ous shaking, the coagulation being thus 
finely broken up. The sputum was ex- 
amined at the end of 24 to 48 hours. Weekly 
and then monthly examinations were made 
for a period of four months. Except when 
hydrochloric acid was used, the bacilli were 
found well preserved and, if anything, 
stained much more deeply. HCl, on the 
other hand, seemed to have either so dis- 
organized the bacilli or so changed their 
staining properties that they could not be 
yi 
Fig. 1. A New Fermentation Tube. 
found at the end of 24 hours. As a result 
of these experiments the author recom- 
mends the addition of an equal volume of a 
5-per-cent. solution of carbolic acid to the 
sputum, which should be vigorously shaken 
up in the bottle so as to break up the lumpy 
coagulation. The apparatus is illustrated 
by the accompanying drawing. The side- 
tube c is packed with non-absorbent cotton ; 
the arm A of the U-tube is filled with mer- 
