46 
koch’s comma bacillus. 
When these sperm cells are ripe the parietal cells absorb 
water violently and swell up, until finally the antlieridium is 
ruptured at the apex aud the antherozoid cells escape, and out 
of each cell is set free an antherozoid, coiled spirally round 
three or four times. The finer anterior end of each anthe¬ 
rozoid is furnished with cilia, while the other or posterior end 
often drags with it a vesicle containing colourless granules ; 
this subsequently fails off and remains at rest, while the 
filament continues its motion alone. 
Imbedded at the base of the arcliegonium is the central 
cell, and leading up from it is the central canal. The central 
cell divides and rounds itself off, forming a smaller cell, the 
oospliere. When this oospliere is ready to be fertilised the 
canal swells up and becomes mucilaginous, and finally watery 
mucilage, and the protoplasm from the canal cells is forced 
out of the opened neck. 
The antlierozoids are retained in numbers by this mucilage, 
several of them obtain an entrance into the canal, stopping it 
up—a few reach the oospliere, force themselves into it, and 
disappear. After thus being fertilised the oospliere swells up, 
develops root, and frond, absorbing in the process the proto¬ 
plasm contained in the protliallium, and begins life on its 
own account as a seedling fern. 
Note. —The above account is partly condensed from Sachs's 
Text Book. 
KOCH’S COMMA BACILLUS. 
BY W. B. GROVE, B.A. 
At the Conversazione of the Midland Institute in January 
I exhibited a slide of this now famous microbe, which was 
especially interesting from its history. It was prepared by 
Professor Strauss, of the French Egyptian Cholera Mission 
(so I am informed), from bacilli grown by himself in gelatine. 
He prefers for the present to call it, not the Cholera Bacillus, 
but by the name given above. I obtained it from Dr. R. 
Suzor, of Paris. An examination under a sufficiently high 
power (a one-tenth is the lowest that is satisfactory) reveals a 
number of minute rod-like organisms, some single, others con¬ 
nected in chains of two or more, mingled with occasional 
threads in which no division into rods could be detected. 
Their most striking feature was that which gives them their 
common name ; most of the rods were more or less bent, 
some so as to form about the sixth of a circle ; others were 
quite straight, and every intermediate stage could be found, 
