PRACTICAL BACTERIOLOGY. 



the vegetative cell. In the anthrax bacillus the 

 spore occurs in the middle of the rodlet, without 

 causing it to swell out. In the butyric acid bacillus 

 the spore again develops in the middle, but the 

 rodlet swells considerably and becomes spindle- 

 shaped. In the tetanus bacillus, the spore causes a 

 considerable swelling at one end of the rodlet, thus 

 making it appear to have a head like a drum-stick. 

 In the kephyr ferment [Dispora caucasica) two spores 

 make their appearance, one at either end, so that the 

 rodlet assumes the form of a dumb-bell. It is, how- 

 ever suspected that there is a fine partition wall be- 

 tween the two portions of the rodlet, for it is gener- 

 ally considered anomalous for two spores to occur in 

 one bacterium. In addition, there are a great number 

 of intermediate methods, so that in almost every 

 species some peculiarity may be observed. There are 

 also many forms which do not form spores, or at any 

 rate, which as yet have not been observed to do so. 



Spores re-act to staining reagents like bacteria, 

 which are very difficult to stain. If we treat a cover- 

 glass preparation of hay bacilli which contain spores 

 with a simple aqueous solution of fuchsine, the rodlets 

 become stained, but the spores are unaffected, remain- 

 ing as brightly shining spots in the more or less in- 

 tensely red bacterium cells. On the other hand, they 

 are readily stained with aniline water solution of fuch- 

 sine. If the solution be used hot, the preparation 



