34 GREAT AMOUNT 



causes of motion may be made to produce tlie 

 same effect. But in the animal body we recognize 

 as the ultimate cause of all force only one cause, 

 the chemical action which the elements of the food 

 and the oxygen of the air mutually exercise on each 

 other. The only known ultimate cause of vital 

 force, either in animals or in plants, is a chemical 

 process. If this be prevented, the phenomena of 

 life do not manifest themselves, or they cease to be 

 recognizable by our senses. If the chemical action 

 be impeded, the vital phenomena must take new 

 forms. 



According to the experiments of Despretz, 1 oz. 

 of carbon evolves, during its combustion, as much 

 heat as would raise the temperature of 105 oz. of 

 water at 32° to 167°, that is, by 135 degrees ; in all, 

 therefore, 105 times 135°=14207 degrees of heat. 

 Consequently, the 13*9 oz. of carbon which are daily 

 converted into carbonic acid in the body of an 

 adult, evolve 13*9 xl4207°=197477-3 degrees of 

 heat. This amount of heat is sufficient to raise the 

 temperature of 1 oz. of water by that number of 

 degrees, or from 32° to 197509*3° ; or to cause 

 136-8 lbs. of water at 32° to boil ; or to heat 370 lbs. 

 of water to 98*3° (the temperature of the human 

 body) ; or to convert into vapour 24 lbs. of water 

 at 98-3°. 



If we now assume that the quantity of water 

 vaporized through the skin and lungs in 24 hours 

 amounts to 48 oz. (3 lbs.), then there will remain, 



