288 THE AMERICAN NATURALIST. [VoL. XXXII. 
of the life history and morphology of Astasia asterospora A. M. and, 
incidentally, Bacillus tumescens Zopf. The paper, in addition to its 
value as a morphological study, contains many interesting details on 
methods of staining to differentiate different parts and clearly bring 
out the structure of the spores, nucleus, vacuoles, and mucilage. 
The organism was obtained from boiled carrot and isolated by 
heating the spores to go° C. for three minutes. On sterilized car- 
rots, a gray, lustrous, gelatinous mass grows along the line of 
inoculation, and in five days spreads over the whole surface, with 
numerous gas bubbles. Other culture media used were as follows: 
peptone cane sugar solution, asparagine solution, peptone meat 
extract. In cane sugar solution, the organism produced 25-60 per 
cent of carbon dioxide, the remainder being a combustible gas, 
chiefly hydrogen. In a normal nutrient solution, the medium be- 
came cloudy in fourteen to eighteen hours. During this period the 
rods are actively motile (period 1). Motility ceases in twenty-four 
hours, small masses of bacteria occur, and some gas is formed. The 
former increase in size, becoming large and flaky, and rise to the 
surface with the contained gas. In fifty hours gas development has 
ceased entirely. The end of the period occurs in forty-eight hours 
(period 2). In forty-eight hours the gelatinous flakes drop to the 
bottom of the flask, and spores are abundant (period 3). In sixty- 
four hours isolated ripe spores occur (period 4). 
The author determined that it does not produce a diastatic fer- 
ment capable of dissolving starch, nor one that is capable of reduc- 
ing cane sugar, but in all probability an enzyme is formed which 
acts upon cellulose, since the middle lamella of the cell wall of car- 
rot is dissolved. It is also an acid-producing organism; the amount 
is greater in normal nutrient solution than when grown in asparagine 
solution. 
The morphology and development of Astasia may be summarized 
as follows: The spore germinates in a normal nutrient solution, 
when kept at 30° C., in about six hours. The rod coming from the 
spore is at once motile; by repeated subdivisions other rods are 
formed. In the course of twelve hours single motile rods cease to 
move, and the development of mucilage proceeds. One may also 
notice that motile masses move through the medium, and these 
approach a mass and leave it again. This is kept up till the 
“swarmer” becomes inactive. In this way round colonies are 
formed and with the contained gas rise to the surface, where they 
collect as mucilaginous flakes. Generally the Astasia occurs as 4 
