CHAPTER VIII.
TYPHUS MURIUM.

THE Bacillus typhi murium (Pig. 116), which created
havoc among the mice in his laboratory, causing most
of them to die, was discovered by Loffler in 1889. It:
is a short organism, somewhat resembling the bacillus
of chicken-cholera. It is rather variable in its dimen-
sions, and often grows into long, flexible filaments. No

FIG, 116.—Bacillus typhi murium, from agar-agar; x 1000 (Itzerott and

Niemann).

sporulation has been observed. It is a motile organism,
with numerous flagella, like those of the typhoid-fever
bacillus. It stains well with the ordinary dyes, but
rather better with Loffler's alkaline methylene blue.

Upon gelatin plates the deep colonies are at first round,
slightly granular, transparent, and grayish. Later they
become yellowish-brown and granular. Superficial col-
onies are similar to those of the typhoid bacillus. In

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