96 THE ORIGIN OF LIFE 



the latter being the simplest term of the whole 

 series. 



But formaldehyde, which can be artificially pro- 

 duced by more than one method, is believed to be 

 the first body formed in the nutrition of plants from 

 CO 2 and water, under the combined influence of 

 chlorophyll and sunlight; though its molecules are 

 supposed to speedily combine, or polymerise, so 

 as to form sugars such as saccharose and maltose. 

 The molecules of these, in their turn, seem further 

 to combine, so as to produce still more complex 

 compounds now appearing as the insoluble and 

 savourless bodies known as starch (of which there 

 are so many varieties) , or else in the form of gums 

 or cellulose. These bodies appear to be the most 

 easily formed products in plants ; and, though they 

 seem all capable of being more or less easily trans- 

 formed into one another, their synthesis has as yet 

 baffled the efforts of chemists. 



Still, the work of Fischer makes it possible that 

 some day he or others may succeed and achieve 

 the synthesis of one or other variety of albumen. 

 Allied products have already been formed by him, 

 as well as by Grimaux. 1 The chemist in such re- 

 searches has to advance step by step and by com- 



1 La Chimie de la matiere vivante, 1910, p. 143. 



