1908] Bacteriologic Study of the Blank Cartridge 27 
The experiment was next tried of adding several crystals of 
urea to the material inoculated for its antichemotactic effect. In 
this rabbit the exude was poor in leucocytes, and tetanus-like 
bacilli more numerous than in previous experiments, but B. aero - 
genes capsulatus had increased proportionately and several series of 
plates were again negative for B. tetani. 
A second series of inoculations with the Peters wads was next 
made. Three rats and three guinea-pigs were each inoculated 
with two wads, together with Staphylococcus pyogenes mucus , and 
several small crystals of urea. One rat and two pigs developed 
tetanus. As in the previods experiments, tetanus-like bacilli 
appeared in greater numbers than in the first series, but have not 
yet been isolated. 
Inoculation experiments were also tried with the other brands 
of cartridges. In the case of the Union Metallic cartridges, the 
wads from the seven original bouillon cultures which yielded B. 
aerogenes capsulatus were used. One rat died without tetanic 
symptoms, the others survived. Likewise, thirteen wads of the 
Winchester cartridges, distributed among three rats and three 
guiney-pigs, produced no symptoms, and the animals survived 
the local suppuration produced by the staphylococcus. 
Previous work has been done on this subject by Le Garde, Tay- 
lor, Wells, and the Boston Health Department, a total of 759 
cartridges having been examined, both by cultures and animal 
inoculations, all with negative results for B. tetani. The only 
report of the finding of B. tetani in cartridges is made by R. N. 
Connolly, bacteriologist to the board of health of Newark, N. J. 
He bases his diagnosis, apparently, on the morphology and odor 
of cultures, and no inoculation of animals is reported. With 
regard to B. aerogenes capsulatus , Wells alone describes an obligate 
anaerobe which corresponds closely to this organism, but says it 
seemed to have motility, and it is not identified. 
My thanks are due to Dr. W. T. Howard, Jr., and to Dr. Roger 
G. Perkins, for their valuable suggestions. 
CONCLUSIONS 
1. B. aerogenes capsulatus (Welch) was present in a large pro- 
portion of the wads of the three makes of cartridges examined. 
