160 Canadian Record of Science. 



the host may be merely one phase of its existence and it is 

 difficult to state where the other phases are passed. Be- 

 ing an amoeba it is only reasonable to suppose that it 

 undergoes conjugation, encystment and sporulation, as do 

 the other members of the genus whose life histories are 

 better known, and these may take place in the cells near 

 the necrotic areas and if so it would ally them closely to 

 the next two forms to be considered. 



Another dicease from which the human race has long 

 suffered is Malaria. It was not, however, until 1880. that 

 Laveran, a Frenchman, announced the discovery of a pa- 

 rasite in the blood of paitents suffering from malarial fever. 

 A few years later well known Italian pathologists certified 

 to the correctness of Laveran's observations and more re- 

 cently these have been confirmed the world over. 



The red blood cell of man is about the 1-2500 th of an 

 inch in diameter and it is within it that the life phases of 

 the organism appear to be passed. The different forms 

 observed may be thus summarized. 



1. Inside the red blood cell irregular clear bodies showing 

 amoeboid movements, occupying a small part or nearly 

 the whole of the cell. 



2. Colorless bodies containing pigments which appear to 

 have taken up the whole blood cell or have even become 

 larger than the original blood cell was. 



3. Bodies having a segmented appearance. 



4. Bodies broken up into spores. 



5. Crescentric bodies with pigment masses. 



6. Actively moving flagellate bodies smaller than the red 

 blood cell. 



Whether all these forms are merely different phases in 

 the life history of one form or whether they represent two or 

 more varieties is as yet unknown. It is probable, however, 

 that there are at least two varieties judging from the clin- 

 ical history of the disease, which is characterized by de- 

 finitely recurring chills, at the end of twenty four, forty- 

 eight, or seventy-two hours. The chills seem to be syn- 

 cronous with the segmenting stage of the organism as these 



