6o Ward. — -A Violet Bacillus from the Thames. 
and one can see them break at the septa into bacillar rodlets 
from 3 to 5 or even 7 fx long by about 075 to o-8 n broad or 
a little more (Fig. 3). They are perfectly colourless, and 
move more rapidly than the filaments, often progressing 
straight forward with fairly rapid motions right across the 
field — say a distance of 100 to 200 times their own length, — 
and then suddenly stop and dart backwards a short distance, 
and then on again. Sometimes these progressive movements 
are associated with a spinning on the axis, or about a central 
point, but more often they are straight forwards. 
Specimens stained with methyl-violet show similar sizes, 
but if taken from older gelatine-cultures the rodlets may 
be very short — about 1 [x long by 075 to o-8 ju, broad — and 
almost like cocci (Fig. 1). After a year in culture, the rods 
are often thinner, o*6 fx or so (Fig. 2), but soon thicken up in 
the broth-drop at ordinary temperatures. No trace of spores 
could be detected ; but from some experiments where old 
cultures were maintained at 5 °° C. to 6o° C. for several hours, 
it appears not improbable that the coccus-like joints act in 
the capacity of spores, and can withstand fairly high 
temperatures for a short time. If this turns out to be correct, 
this Schizomycete may have to be classed as a Bacterium 
and not as a Bacillus. The rods often show three or four 
spore-like, bright, denser spots (Figs. 1, 2). 
Numerous attempts to obtain any further development in 
culture-cells led to negative results only. In gelatine-drops 
at 18-22° C. the growth to filaments occurs as in broth, but 
more slowly, and in twenty-four hours the rods and filaments 
are motile, slowly writhing or jerking in the liquefying drop ; 
the movements are obviously restricted. 
Plate-cultures in gelatine at 20° C. show colonies in forty- 
eight hours — visible to the unaided eye on the third day — 
which are small, slightly yellowish discs, with a granular 
texture under a one-third objective and sometimes traces of 
zonal structure where submerged. Those nearer the surface 
break through in a conical shape, and spread their margins 
irregularly over the gelatine : the much more extended 
