ZOOLOaY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 635 



&c,, resembled those of anthrax, but were yet sufficiently different to 

 warrant a careful examination. 



Cultivations from the mesenteric glands resulted in the isolation of 

 a micro-organism which resembled, but was not identical with, anthrax 

 bacillus. As the microphyte was found in the other organs of the body, 

 and in those of inoculated animals, it was regarded as the cause of the 

 disease. The animals inoculated from pure cultivations were dogs, 

 rabbits, guinea-pigs, and white mice. In morphological characteristics 

 it resembles Proteus to some extent. According to the various nutritive 

 media, the micro-organism grows in the culture sometimes as long 

 jointed or unjoiuted threads, sometimes as encapsuled rodlets and 

 roundish corpuscles. The name proposed by the author for his new 

 microphyte is Proteus hominis. 



Dissemination of Bacillus by Flies. * — MM. Spillmann and 

 Haushalter call attention to some observations made by them which 

 show that flies may be of injurious importance in the dissemination of 

 the bacillus of tuberculosis. 



They captured some flies from the vessels containing the expectora- 

 tions of patients suffering from tuberculosis. These flies soon died, 

 and examination showed the presence of abundant bacilli of tubercu- 

 losis both in their excrement and in their abdominal cavities. Since 

 the flies die and crumble to dust in odd corners, the bacilli may be readily 

 liberated, and the germs may also be landed along with the excrement 

 on articles of food and clothing. While it is not yet known how the 

 life within the fly may affect the vitality of the bacilli, it seems at 

 least advisable that tJie precaution should be taken of covering and 

 of sterilizing the vessels containing the expectorations of tuberculosis, 



* Comptes Eendus, cv. (1887) pp. 352-3. 



