14 THE BACTEEIA OF THE APIARY. 



heavy white sediment to form in the bend of the tube. The reaction is at first 

 slightly acid, but subsequently becomes alkaline. No gas is formed. 



Lactose. — Reaction alkaline. 



Saccharose. — Reaction alkaline. 



Levulose. — Reaction acid. 



Maltose. — Reaction acid. 



Mannite. — Reaction alkaline. 



Potato water. — Reaction alkaline. 



Agar slant. — A luxuriant growth takes place on this medium. The growth 

 gradually increases to a moist, glistening one, being then friable and of a grayish 

 brown color. 



Serum. — A luxuriant, brownish, glistening, friable growth spreads over the 

 entire surface. No liquefaction is observed. 



Potato. — An abundant fleshy growth of a brown color spreads over the entire 

 surface. The water supports a heavy growth. The potato is slightly discolored. 



Milk. — Precipitation takes place rapidly, followed by a gradual digestion of 

 the casein, the medium changing from the top downward to a translucent 

 liquid, becoming at last semi-transparent and viscid. 



Litmus milk. — Precipitation of the casein takes place usually within 24 hours, 

 followed by a gradual peptonization. Reduction of the litmus occurs rapidly, 

 leaving the medium slightly brown ; later the blue color will return on exposing 

 the milk to the air by shaking. Reaction alkaline. 



Gelatin. — An abundant growth takes place with rapid, infundibuliform lique- 

 faction. A heavy, white, friable membrane is formed on the surface of the 

 liquefied medium. A flocculent sediment lies at the bottom of the clear lique- 

 fied portion. 



Acid agar. — Growth takes place. 



Indol. — None has been observed. 



Nitrate. — Reduction to nitrite is positive. 



Bacterium acidiformans. (Sternberg, 1892.) 



Occurrence. — Isolated from the scraping of propolis and wax from the hives 

 and frames of healthy colonies. 



Gelatin colonies. — The superficial colonies are friable, convex, opaque, and 

 white with even border ; when magnified they are finely granular, sometimes 

 radiately marked. They are from 1 to 4 millimeters in diameter. The deep 

 colonies are spherical or oblong and entire. 



Morphology. — When taken from an agar slant 24 hours old, the rods are 

 short, with rounded ends, singly and in pairs. Length about 1.6|ti, thickness 

 O.Sfi. They stain uniformly with carbol-fuchsin. Flagella are apparently ab- 

 sent. 



Motility. — No motility has been observed in any medium. 



Spores. — Spores are apparently absent. 



Gram's stain. — The bacteria are decolorized by Gram's method. 



Oxygen requirements. — Facultatively anaerobic. 



Bouillon. — The medium becomes slightly clouded with a feeble ring of growth 

 on the glass at the surface of the liquid. A moderate amount of white friable 

 sediment is formed. Reaction alkaline. 



Glucose. — Uniformly and slightly clouded. No gas is formed. Reaction 

 acid. 



Lactose. — Reaction acid. 



Saccharose. — Reaction alkaline. 



Levulose. — Reaction acid. 



