Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. ISS 



That the radicals of all plants contain an azotic substance in suf- 

 ficient abundance to give out upon distillation free or carbonated 

 ammonia. 



That every organ in a state of growth or in the course of deve- 

 lopment contains an abundance of an azotized substance ; that as 

 the organ becomes developed, the azotized substance decreases in 

 quantity in comparison to the non-azotized substance, which latter 

 becomes by degrees altogether predominant. From a number of 

 examinations he concludes this fact to be general ; — that the cam- 

 bium contains this azotized substance in abundance, and that the 

 sap is also charged with it. 



M. Payen found in passing a quantity of water through a recently 

 cut stick of elder that the wood was deprived of all the azotized 

 matter, which the water separated ; from this he is led to explain 

 the action of all the substances employed to preserve wood which 

 have the effects of acting upon the azotized substance, coagulating 

 it, and rendering it insoluble in water. — L'Institut, February 1838. 

 No. 224. 



PROrORTIONS OF ANIMAL AND EARTHY MATTER IN HUMAN 



BONES. 



Dr. G. O. Rees read a paper on the above subject, on the 8th of 

 May, at a meeting of the Medico-Chirurgical Society. 



The author, after alluding to the jjrecautions necessary to be ob- 

 served in the analysis of bone, proceeded to recount the results of 

 his examinations. The solid parts of the femur, tibia, fibula, hu- 

 merus, radius, and ulna were chosen for analysis ; also the squa- 

 mous portion of the temporal bone, the arch of a dorsal vertebra, 

 the external crust of a rib and of the clavicle, the cora^oid process 

 of the scapula, a portion of the ilium near the crest of the bone, the 

 metatarsal bone of the great toe, and a part of the middle portion 

 of the sternum. These bones had been similarly prepared, and were 

 quite free from fat, periosteum, and cartilage, and perfectly dry. 

 The long bones of the extremities were found to contain from 63 '02 

 to 60" 01 per cent, of earthy matter, and the bones of the trunk from 

 58'79 to 54'51 per cent. The author then mentioned the general 

 conclusions to which his experiments had led him. They were as 

 follows : — 



1st. The long bones of the extremities contain more earthy mat- 

 ter than those of the trunk. 



2nd. The bones of the upper extremity contain somewhat more 

 earthy matter than the corresponding bones of the lower extremity ; 

 thus the humerus more than the femur, and the radius and ulna more 

 than the tibia and fibula. 



3rd. The humerus contains more earthy matter than the radius 

 and ulna, and the femur more than the tibia and fibula. 



4th. The tibia and fibula contain, as nearly as possible, the same 

 proportions of earthy matter, and the radius and ulna may be con- 

 sidered as alike in constitution. 



5th. The vertebra, rib, and clavicle are nearly identical as re- 



