leathern Illinois. Some of these insects which were dead on re- 
hpt were supposed to be infested with bacteria, but slides 
lade from the fluids and from solid cultures attempted do not 
infirm this supposition. Mounted films prepared from the 
uids of the crushed chinch bug's themselves show no bacteria, 
nd five test tubes of agar, infected by surface scratches—one 
f them with the fluids of a dead chinch bug and the others 
om those of one still living*—showed a week later only a 
oubtful trace of granular growth along the upper end of the 
eedle track, the slides from which do not contain a single M. 
isectorum. There can thus be little doubt that these chinch 
ugs were free from bacterial disease. They were obtained in 
le course of a long trip in which everything was closely scanned 
ith the hope of finding traces of contagious disease, and the 
bservation is of interest as showing the probable absence of 
le affection in a region where two years later it became ex- 
3edingly prevalent. 
Our next attempt was made September 25, 1888, with a 
abe of solid gelatine infected from the fluids of a young chinch 
ug in the third stage of its growth, the method of procedure 
eing similar to that described above, except that the specimen 
as washed in distilled water before crushing. This insect was 
aken from a corn field at Odin, Illinois, where chinch bugs were 
oticeably very much less numerous than they had been ob- 
srved to be some weeks before, and where, also, adults were 
resent in noticeably small proportion. The fluids were swarm- 
lg with the usual Micrococci. The infection was made with 
sterilized platinum needle dipped in the fluids of the crushed 
lsect and drawn lightly across the oblique surface of the gela- 
ine in the tube. On the 29th of September, a profuse growth 
ad made its appearance in this tube, the gelatine being con- 
iderably liquefied and the liquid portion slightly milky, but 
he bacterial growth having mostly settled in an irregular floc- 
ul ent mass. 
A slide made at this time shows an apparently pure culture ‘ 
f the original Micrococcus insect orum, so far as may be de- 
3i*mined by critical microscopical examination. It is quite cer- 
ain. however, that the growth was mixed, and the liquefaction 
f the gelatine was probably due to another form than the 
hinch-bug microbe, especially as examinations of the bacteria 
hen fresh showed some flagellate movement.—a feature never 
3en in those directly from the insect. 
A fairly satisfactory attempt at the culture of the chinch-bug 
licrococcus was made by Professor Burrill in the bacterial 
iboratory of the University in October, 1888, from a still 
ving specimen obtained at Mt. Carmel, Illinois, September 30. 
die chinch bug was thoroughly washed before crushing in cor- 
osive sublimate solution to disinfect the surface, and was then 
rushed in freshly distilled water. From the fluids thus ob- 
ained, a solid culture was begun in an agar tube and placed 
