606 Transactions of the Society. 



instances, when mounted in water on a slide, detect the " comma " 

 haciLlus amongst the plasm of the cells, bnt I could not speak 

 positively on this rather difficult point. The experiments require 

 repetition. Still, if it be a fact that the rootlets can take up these 

 organisms, it may point to another source for the conveyance of 

 such into the iatestines of man and animals, especially of bii'ds and 

 rodents. 



It may be an error, but I believe these experiments with these 

 particular bacilli to be the first recorded. In reference to the 

 straight bacillus, I cannot positively say it is Bacillus suUilis, but 

 I expect it is. My friend Mr. DowdesweU, who is more acquainted 

 with these organisms than I am. has had some for examination, and 

 I am now able to add his opinion, which is that they closely re- 

 semble Bacillus suhtiJis, if not it. Experiments in these directions 

 open a large field of inquiry, and I am not aware they are 

 trammelled by any Act of Parhament. 



P.S. 19th. — The abdominal sac of the bee that had been 

 overstained and left covered on the slide in weak acetate of potash, 

 was laid open in a little fi'eshly boiled distilled water on the slide. 

 A considerable number of bacteria were seen, some as narrow rods 

 of various lengths, another kind with sHght motion, and some curved 

 baciLh. A very few amongst these had shght though perceptible 

 motion. There were also straight rod-spores in full development. 



The dejections of the wasp after feeding on lumjD-sugar moistened 

 with distiUed water for five days, yielded scarcely a rod and the 

 micrococci were much less numerous. The dejections had a very 

 small portion of solid matter. 



21 6'^. — A long red-bodied fly I had put with the wasp was soon 

 killed ; the head, legs, and wings were nipped off and the contents 

 of the thorax speedily devoured. 



22nd. — Fed vdth the sugar and water, and a blow-fly (Musca 

 vomitoria) put with it in the same tumbler. 



2'ird. — Both were seen to feed freely off a lump of sugar 

 moistened with old dried blood of mouse, dead of anthrax, mixed 

 with distnied water. In the mixture only a few rods were noticed 

 when examined microscopically. 



24fA. — Fed in the same way, and both watched feeding. 

 2bth. — The two insects were sejoarated, and just as the vessels, 

 &c., had been changed, and before feeding them with the same 

 blood-miiture, the wasp had a clear fluid dejection, which was im- 

 mediately examined. Only six rods were counted in many fields. 

 "Within a quarter of an hom- after feeding the wasp had three other 

 dejections on the fresh square of glass, one with a tiny lump of 

 solid matter. Within ten minutes another clear fluid dejection 

 was passed. This had some peculiar bodies which I regarded as 

 intestinal parasites, ranging in size from the sixth to the half 



