CHEMISTRY. 145 



then with alcohol, and allowed to stand. After two days 

 brilliant tabular crystals, green by reflected, red by trans- 

 mitted light, appeared, which were soluble in benzene and 

 chloroform with a red color. 



Kosman has discovered in the buds of trees and the young 

 leaves of many plants a natural ferment, which is capable of 

 transforming cane-sugar into glucose, of converting starch 

 into dextrin and glucose, and of resolving glucosides into 

 glucose and some other body. The ferment was observed 

 in the buds of elm, poplar, oak, and filbert, in the flowers of 

 dogwood and the plum, and in the young leaves of chelido- 

 nium and digitalis. 



Boussingault has detected the presence of sugar in the 

 petals of several flowers, varying in amount from 7.22 per 

 cent, in the oleander, through 5.00 in orange petals, 4.42 in 

 portulacca, 3.80 in acacia petals, 3.40 in rose petals, 2.60 in 

 lily petals, and 2.20 in rhododendron petals, to 1.44 in those 

 of magnolia. 



Pfliiger has studied the influence of respiration on the 

 metamorphosis of tissue, and maintains, in opposition to the 

 view* generally held, that the respiratory mechanism has no 

 influence on the amount of the total tissue metamorphosis. 

 AVith rabbits, he found that the absorption of oxygen in 

 ordinary respiration is the same as during the most active 

 artificial respiration. He believes that the amount of oxy- 

 gen absorbed is a better index of the change of tissue than 

 the carbon dioxide eliminated. 



Cloez has detected copper in the blood of two male deer 

 killed wild in the woods. In the first case no special precau- 

 tions were taken, but in the second the process was conduct- 

 ed with the greatest care, and three milligrams of copper ox- 

 ide were obtained from 530 grams of blood. In the opinion 

 of the author, the question of its origin is an interesting one, 

 since the metal could have come only from the vegetables 

 eaten or the water drunk by the animal. 



Radziszewski has observed that light is emitted when cer- 

 tain aldehydes in alcoholic solution are agitated with potas- 

 sium hydrate. He suggests that the phosphorescence of ma- 

 rine animals may be due to the formic aldehyde they excrete, 

 which, oxidizing to formic acid, produces the sensation of 

 stinging which they exhibit. 



Q 



