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kttherto considered as belonging entirely to the domain of chemical affinity—areess entially the results of an organic development of living beings. This position® e crns to be established by the following experiments: 1. A matrass or flask con-Wning a few bits of flesh, being filled up to one third of its capacity with water, was^josed with a cork, into which two slender glass tubes were cemented air-tight. Both1 these tubes were passed externally through a metallic bath, kept constantly melted,A® temperature approaching to that of boiling mercury. The end of one of the'Ps ’ 0,1 urging from the bath, was placed in communication with a gasometer.: aa contents of the matrass were now made to boil briskly, so that the air containeda H and the glass tubes was expelled. The matrass being then allowed to cool, ajhrreat of atmospherical air was made constantly to pass through it from the gasome-er > while the metallic bath was kept constantly hot enough to decompose the livingtArticles in the air. In these experiments, which were many times repeated, no infu-0f ia or fungi appeared, no putrefaction took place, the flesh underwent no change,j. 0 ® the liquor remained as clear as it was immediately after being boiled. As it was°Und very troublesome to maintain the metallic bath at the melting pitch, the foMow-0 p modification of the apparatus was adopted in the subsequent researches : A flask& three ounces capacity, being one fourth filled with water and flesh, was closed withc tight cork, secured in its place by wire. Two glass tubes were passed through thet ° r k’ the one of them was bent down, and dipped at its end into a small capsule con-c thing quicksilver, covered with a layer of oil; the other was bent on leaving the; r k, fi rs t i n to a horizontal direction, and downward for an inch and a half, afterwardn . a pair of spiral turns, then upward, lastly horizontal, whence it was drawn out to a°mt. The pores of the cork having been filled with caoutchouc varnish, the contentsthe flask were boiled till steam issued copiously through both of the glass tubes, and■ e quicksilver and oil became as hot as boiling water. In order that no living par-
c es could be generated in the water condensed beneath the oil, a few fragments ofa rr osive sublimate were laid upon the quicksilver. During the boiling, the flame ofs Pirit lamp was drawn up over the spiral part of the second glass tube, by means of, Alass chimney placed over it, so as to soften the glass, while the further part of the3 ?. e Was heated by another spirit lamp, to prevent its getting cracked by the condens-U l °u of the steam. After the ebullition had been kept up a quarter of an hour, theWas allowed to cool, and get filled with air through the hot spiral of the secondi When the contents were quite cold, the end of this tube was hermetically„ hied, the part of it between the point and the spiral was heated strongly with thebo'i' 68 ’ an< ^ t ' ie l am P 3 were then withdrawn. The matrass contained now nothing butSe bed flesh an( j gently ignited air. The air was renewed occasionally through theCo ° n d tube, its spiral part being first strongly heated, its point then broken off, anda t aaec ted with a gasometer, which caused the air to pass onward slowly, and escape^ end of the first tube immersed in the quicksilver. The end of the second tubee 3 again Hermetically closed, while the part interjacent between it and the spiral was.Posed to the spirit flame. By means of these precautions, decoctions of flesh weret 0 i s £rved, during a period of six weeks, in a temperature of from 14° to 20 3 R. (63|°j nJ‘° F.), without any appearance of putrefaction, infusoria, or mouldiness : on open-bcfl ve ssel, however, the contents fermented in a few days, as if they had been•hu ^ * a the ordinary manner. In conducting such researches, the greatest painstaken to render the cork and junctions of the glass tubes perfectly air-tight.c e 6 fellowing more convenient modification of the experiment, but one equally suc-Mtl ^ a® 1 ! demonstrative, was arranged by F. Schulze. The glass tubes connectedo,, 1 the flask were furnished each with a bulb at a little distance from the cork; intoMhi w hich globes caustic alkaline ley being put, and into the other strong sul-e ht C ac ' ( h a ’ r was slowly sucked through the extremity of the one lube, while iti)^A ret l at the other, so as to renew the atmosphere over the decoction of flesh in theIn another set of experiments, four flasks being filled'with a solution of cane-a Cqf - c °ataining some beer-yeast, were corked and plunged in boiling water till they'the its temperature. They were then taffcn out, inverted in a mercurial bath,and allowed to cool in that position. From one third to one fourth of theirth e J 1 '® °f atmospherical air was now introduced into each of the flasks ; into two oftli]. thr °ugh slender glass tubes kept red hot at a certain point, into the other twoglass tubes not heated. By analysis it was found that the air thus heateddeg airi ed only 19-4 per cent, of oxygen, instead of 20’8 ; but, to compensate for thista Wr. Cy ’ ? h ' ttle more air was admitted into the two flasks connected with the heatedVejA loan into the two others. The flasks were now corked and placed in an in-p eri ® a Position, in a temperature of from 10° to 14° R. (54J° to 63|° F-). After ai)°tg °f from four to six weeks, it was found that fermentation had taken place inSoqj °*■ the flasks which contained the non-ignited air—for, in loosening the corks,°f the contents were projected with force—but, in the other two flasks, there
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