46 REPORT OF THE BACTERIOLOGIST OF THB 
some time, one would be led to suppose that the production of 
color is connected with the activity of some form of life in the 
cheese. The truth of this supposition was confirmed in 1897 by 
Connell,? who isolated from a rusty spot cheese an organism 
which he called Bacillus rudensis. He showed the causal] rela- 
tion of this bacterial form by using a starter made from it in 
the manufacture of cheese in which these rusty spots later ap- 
peared. 
In our own experiments we have repeated this with organisms 
derived from outbreaks in different factories. The evidence 
seems to be conclusive that the red spots are produced by the 
growth of a minute plant which finds its way into the curd be- 
fore it is put to press. . 
; \ 
HOW DOES THIS BACTERIUM GET INTO THE VAT. 
In the factory studied by Dr. Connell, the drain leading from 
the factory was found coated with a reddish-yellow slime which 
contained the organism causing the discoloration in the cheese. 
Upon giving the factory a thorough cleansing, washing the floor 
and woodwork with disinfecting solution, whitewashing the in- 
side walls and replacing the wooden drain with an iron one, the 
trouble disappeared. From the fact that this attempt at disin- 
fection covered all the available points about the factory, no 
substantial conclusion can be drawn as to the particular road 
through which the bacteria gained entrance to the curd. The 
one fact that seems evident is that in this instance the source 
of the infection was located at the factory rather than upon the 
farms. 
In a number of New York factories an honest attempt has 
been made to meet all the demands of cleanliness and still this 
discoloration continues in the cheese. While the source of in- 
fection and methods of distribution of this trouble remained in 
*Connell, W. T. Discoloration of Cheese. Canadian Dept. of Agr., Bul, 
1897. - ee Sees he 
