Marcu i, 1901.] 
relationship pointing to an increase in sew- 
age pollution at times when the water of the 
river becomes turbid. The author recom- 
mends the use of carbolic acid as described 
in the employment of solid culture media 
for the determination of the number of 
colon bacilli present in surface waters with- 
out dilution. 
A Few Experimental Data on Hypodermie In- 
jections: S. J. Meurzer, New York City. 
From two series of experiments, Meltzer 
arrived at the conclusions: (1) That the 
effect of subcutaneous injection depends to 
a very large degree upon the concentration 
of the injected fluid, and very little, if any, 
upon its bulk; (2) that the effect is dis- 
tinctly increased by a distribution of the 
injected quantity over several areas. The 
author employed crystalloid solutions, and 
restricts his conclusions to this kind of 
liquids. 
The Utility of a Supply of Live Steam in the 
Laboratory: H. A. Harpine, Geneva, 
ING WG 
The expense connected with cooking and 
sterilizing in the bacteriological laboratory 
is usually great, because of the high cost and 
low efficiency of gas. As a saving of time 
and money, the advantage of using steam, 
generated directly by coal, is obvious. In 
fitting up the bacteriological laboratory at 
the New York Agricultural Experiment 
’ Station, the following devices have been 
tried and found satisfactory : In the case of 
the Arnold sterilizer, a steam pipe was in- 
troduced through the wall of the passage 
in which the steam normally rises into the 
sterilizing chamber, and an elbow screwed 
to the end of this pipe and turned down- 
ward. With this connection, the Arnold 
can be brought to a temperature of 99° C. 
within five minutes, without any unpleas- 
ant noise or undue waste of steam. An 
autoclave was constructed, differing from 
SOLENCE 
331 
the ordinary type in that steam was intro- 
duced from a high pressure boiler. By 
means of a reducing valve the steam pres- 
sure and, consequently, the temperature 
within the autoclave, can be held within 
very narrow limits. A ten-minute expo- 
sure at 120° C. suffices to render tubes of 
gelatin and other media sterile. Steam 
cups were installed, having the shape of an 
ordinary water-bath, except that their depth 
was considerably increased. A steam inlet 
was placed at the bottom, and a waste pipe 
provided for carrying off the condensation. 
In these cups water is heated and agar is 
melted much more quickly than it could be 
done over an ordinary Bunsen burner, and 
in cooking media there is no possibility of 
boiling over or burning. The above pieces 
of apparatus, together with the hot air 
sterilizer, are placed upon an eight-foot 
bench, and nearly all the heat radiated is 
-carried off by a galvanized iron hood. 
These devices have been in use for nearly 
two years and are giving good satisfaction. 
H. W. Conn, 
Secretary. 
WORK AND EXPENDITURES OF THE AGRI- 
CULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS FOR 
THE YEAR ENDED JUNE 380, 1900. 
Tue Secretary of Agriculture has re- 
cently transmitted to Congress the annual 
report on the work and expenditures of the 
Agricultural Experiment Stations, made by 
A.C. True, Director of the Office of Experi- 
ment Stations. The following paragraphs 
are taken from the introduction to this re- 
port: 
THE WORK OF THE 
TO PRACTICAL AGRICULTURE. 
In making our examination of the work 
of the experiment stations during the past 
year we have particularly inquired whether 
their operations are conducted with special 
reference to the agricultural needs of their 
STATIONS AS RELATED 
