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"No. 4. Sample bought 11/9.
"Examined 20 fish. The Drigalski plates showed several colonies, which in
"aspect resembled those of B. typhosus, four of these colonies being composed of
"motile cylindrical bacilli (like B. typhosus), were subjected to the test of agglu"tination
with typhoid serum. Two of them gave indication of clumping; but I
"made sub-cultures of all four colonies. Only one of them stood this further test,
"but unfortunately its bacilli would not agglutinate with typhoid serum. From
"this it follows that no B. typhosus could be identified in this sample. I may add
"that this sample contained a very large number of B. coli communis.
"No. 5. Sample of 12/9.
"This sample was less fresh. The plates were densely crowded with colonies,
"amongst these enormous numbers of B. coli. Several colonies there were which
"showed a faint resemblance to B. typhosus, but, on microscopic examination and
"test with typhoid serum, failed to respond. So that this sample did not yield
"B. typhosus, although it was crowded with B. coli.
"Nos. 6 and 7. Samples of 10/10.
"Sample 6. Fresh.
"Sample 7. Cooked.
"Of each sample, examined the viscera of 16 fish.
"Minced and distributed in 2 c.c. of sterile salt solution, and made of each
"sample two large Drigalski plates, each with 0*1 c.c. of thick turbid fluid.
"Result: Cooked whitebait—no colonies.
"Fresh whitebait—large number of colonies ; Proteus, B. coli, streptococci
"and a number of blue colonies. These were tested with typhoid blood serum
"and by subculture; none of them were remotely related to the typhoid
"Gaertner group, all of them liquefying gelatine and giving no result with
"typhoid serum.
"No. 8. Sample of Cooked Whitebait of 18/10.
"The viscera of 16 fish were examined by Drigalski plates. No bacteria
"belonging to the Coli-typhoid group could be discovered ; the fish were
"practically sterile.
"(Signed) E. KLEIN."
It will be seen from the above that all five samples of uncooked whitebait
were contaminated, and although the B. typhosus was not discovered, there is
always the possibility of such specific disease being conveyed through the
agency of fish polluted by sewage. It will also be noted that the degree of
contamination varied, there being remarkably few microbes in No. 1, while
Nos. 3, 4 and 5 contained large quantities of the bacillus coli.
Sample No. 2 was cooked at a City tavern in my presence. This sample
proved sterile on examination, but the cooking occupied 65 seconds, a