OBSERVATIONS BY HASSELBALCH. 



21 



signs have appeared not only in these 3 experiments, but in about 10 

 instances where I have made observations on the fasting new-born 

 infant. The child's customary sign of hunger, sucking its fingers or its 

 hand, can most certainly be misunderstood, but not by a skilled obser- 

 ver. There is a considerable difference in the playful manner in which 

 a satisfied and well-nourished infant temporarily sucks its fingers for 

 lack of any other pastime, and the energy in a hungry child's strong 

 sucking, which is either frequently interrupted by angry crying or is 

 constant and hopeful. 



The rule which is brought out by table 1, i. e., that the respiratory 

 quotient is nearer 1.00 the better the condition of the infants, is not 

 contradicted by table 2. The child in experiments 19 and 20 with the 

 fairly normal weight of 3,600 grams and the unusual length of 54 cm. 

 had a very marked birth swelling at the crown of the head; its real 

 length was barely over 51 cm.; and it is inaccurately recorded in the 

 remarks accompanying the table "good condition." 



Table 2 brings out a second point: The respiratory quotients are 

 nearer 1 the sooner after birth the infant is experimented upon. 



TABLE 2. 



*No food; no bath; wide awake; quite contented; no crying. 



2 Hungry and sleepy in last two-thirds of experiment; frequently sleeping, constantly awakened; 



no crying. 



3 No food; no bath; awake and contented. 

 4 Sleeping quietly during nearly the whole experiment. 

 6 No food ; bath ; good condition; considerable birth swelling; lively and contented; later hungry 



and somewhat sleepy. 

 'Stupid; fell asleep now and then, but awake most of the time; cried 1 minute; at the last lively. 



A well-nourished infant, born at full term, has a store of carbohydrate 

 which it lives on either exclusively or largely in the first hours of its 

 life; gradually this store (which consequently can not be especially 

 large) is used up, and this leads to an increase in the oxidation of the 

 other elements. 



In table 3 five experiments are given with 4 under-weight, prema- 

 turely-born infants. The experiments indicate that such infants show 

 signs of being very poorly nourished, in that their carbohydrate store 

 is very quickly spent. But if the infant is experimented upon soon 



