Ice and Microbes.

Manawatu Herald, 12 October 1895, Page 2

Ice and Microbes.

The brightness and light of life in Paris is increased by the report of the Municipal Laboratory on ice. Judging from the report, strychnine is simply a refreshing draught as compared with it. The former kiili you according to contract, the latter keeps on killing you, and indents a thousand atrocities to make your end more noticeable. In a cubic centimetre of ice there are 1,085,000 colonies of microbes, and additional facts would not be cleared up by translating the result of the examina- , tiun in English. This is how it roads :— Debris vegetaux ; Polls, vaissaux spi rales, debris d'etoffes, digues unicellnlaim*, spyrogyre3, diatomee?, Debris animaux, Debris de tissu musculaire etc. lnfusoires : vortieella convallaria, oxytricha gibba, paramecies, kolpodes, volvax, monadcK, infusoires cillies. The layman may be excused for not being on intimate terms with most of these novelties. The names suggest a lot, and it is to be hoped that they cover a minimum of harm under these high sounding titles. Statisticians; will be pleased with the discovery though. Estimating the population of Paris at two and a half millions, > what is the fighting strength of the city with each individual the owner of a colony of 1,085,000 families of microbes.