20 STORRS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION, 
Report of Supervising Bacteriologist. 
—— e+e ee 
Lo the Director of the Storrs Agricultural Experiment Station: 
The bacteriological work of the Station the last year has 
comprised several series of experiments. A part of these have 
been carried out under the direction of Mr. W. A. Stocking 
and are reported by him in another part of this report. The 
work done under my own personal direction has been conducted 
partly at Storrs and partly at Middletown. ‘This work has 
comprised two lines of investigation. 
1. The work undertaken by the Station upon Camembert 
cheese has involved a considerable amount of bacteriological 
study. While it has become abundantly proved that the chief 
agent in the ripening of these cheeses is a mold, it has been also 
clear that bacteria play an important and necessary part in this 
ripening. Exactly what their agency is it has been difficult to 
determine, and it has hitherto not been understood. A large 
number of cheeses of our own make, of cheeses bought in the 
market, and of cheeses imported especially from Europe for our 
work have been subjected to bacteriological analysis. A part of 
the results have already been published in Bulletin No. 35,anda 
fuller report will appear later. ‘The essential result of this work 
is to show that the only bacteria necessary to the ripening of the 
cheese are the common lactic bacteria. Ideally ripened Cam- 
emberts have been found containing, at least within the rind, 
no other varieties of bacteria. When other species are present 
various kinds of abnormal ripening are usually the result. 
2. - The second line of investigation, far more extensive than 
the first, has been upon the systematic study and classification 
of dairy bacteria. This work was begun several years ago and 
has involved a large amount of labor. Hundreds of varieties 
of bacteria from different sections of the country, as well as 
from Europe, have been studied. ‘The work has progressed so 
