1879.] On the Nature of the Far on the Tongue. 



487 



surface of the tongue, I cultivated it upon a warm stage. Minute 

 portions of fur from different tongues were placed in a drop of 

 aqueous humour, and kept at a temperature of 30° to 33° C, Free 

 growth and development took place, but instead of the single fungus 

 I had expected several fungi were found. Only two forms, however, 

 were present in every instance, namely, Micrococcus and Bacillus, and, 

 from a comparison of the natural fur with results obtained by 

 artificial cultivation, I think there can be little doubt that the fur 

 consists chiefly or essentially of these two fungi. 



Micrococcus existed in every case examined, small spherical bodies 

 generally in pairs or groups of four, but often forming chains. Upon 

 the warm stage rapid multiplication took place with the production of 

 pairs, fours, long and short chains often twisted and looped, and small 

 and large colonies. When these colonies reached a large size (which 

 happened in the course of a few hours) they presented a granular 

 appearance and assumed a yellow or brownish-yellow colour, and all 

 movement ceased in them.* The development of Micrococcus occurred 

 abundantly and rapidly in all the experiments made with the exception 

 of one, in which so rapid a formation of Bacterium termo took place, 

 that in the course of a few hours the whole of the fluid was clouded 

 and obscured by its presence. Usually the development of other 

 fungi did not interfere with that of Micrococcus. Comparing the 

 masses or colonies produced by cultivation with the granular masses of 

 which the fur chiefly consists, the chief constituent of each appears to 

 be the Micrococcus sphere. The natural colonies are, of course, not 

 often so pure as those produced artificially, but still not uncommonly 

 these natural colonies present the same regularity of structure as the 

 colonies figured in sketch 5. 



The other form, Bacillus, was also present in every case examined r 

 but unfortunately development seldom or never occurred, being 

 apparently prevented by the presence of other fungi. It consisted of 

 slender rods, having a well-marked double contour and a light interior. 

 Their length varied much, but was always many times their breadth. 

 There were no defined contents within the rods, except in some of the 

 longer and broader of them, which contained highly refractive- 

 spherical bodies which appeared to be spores. The shorter rods 

 moved actively about the field of the microscope, and even some of 

 the longer rods (looking when magnified 450 times from ^ inch to 

 1 inch long) moved slowly from place to place. The rods were 

 generally straight, but some of the longer ones were curved or bent. 

 They often formed short chains or occurred in pairs, but did not form 

 colonies, although they sometimes occurred in great number and of 

 large size in the Micrococcus colonies. They showed very little 



* I never observed any lengthening into rods, or the development of any other 

 form from these Micrococci. 



