708 The American Naturalist. [August, 
While this organism had the appearance of being a specific 
bacillus-form, I was not thoroughly convinced thereof until I 
had made a fractional culture in bouillon which resulted in 
the development of the one form described. ` The Micrococcus 
vaccine I have never found in vaccine or small-pox lymph. 
Regarding the polymorphism of this species I can state that 
I have observed no such swellings at the middle or ends of the 
long cells in old cultures as Martin (l. c.) noticed in the bacilli 
found by him, or as Hansen” described for acetic bacteria. 
From the figures of Micrococcus vaccine and variol# which I 
have seen I am inclined to believe that this organism is not 
specific, but consists of free spores of Dispora variole. I also 
believe that the facts in regard to the spread of small-pox, as 
well as the observations stated above point towards the conclu- 
sion that the spores are the main source through which the 
disease, itself, as well as vaccinia, are reproduced. 
The organisms from small-pox and vaccine lymph are mor- 
phologically identical. The physiological difference consists 
mainly in the attenuation of the form found in vaccine lymph, 
so far as has been hitherto ascertained. 
Buttersack” published, a short time ago, an account of cer- 
tain bodies which occurred, constantly, i in vaccine lymph, and 
which may have some relation to vaccinia. He allowed lymph 
to dry on covers; having fixed the latter to the slides by means 
of bees-wax, he inspected the film by immersion and observed 
a net-work of threads wiih small, refractive, round bodies, 
Landmann” and Dräer” interpreted Buttersack’s discovery as 
threads of fibrin and other albuminates. I would assume that 
B. had seen the “ thread-stage ” of the organism found by me. 
Having not yet seen B’s illustrations, this is a mere supposi- 
tion. 
The diagnostic value of my discovery is yet uncertain. I 
hope to be able to report upon the progress of the work, espe- 
cially concerning inoculations upon animals and the prepara- 
% Comp. Rend. Laboratoire de Carlsberg III, 265-327, 1894. 
% Arbeiten a. d. Kais. Gesundheitsamte IX, 96-110, 1894. 
3 Hygienische Rundschau, 1894, 433-34. 
* Centralblatt f. Bakt. und Parasitenkunde XVI, 561-564, 1894, 
