1026 Agricultural Gazette of N.S.W. [Z)<?c. 2, 1908. 



are not dependent on the: life of the cell — in otluM- words, it is ;iii autolytic 

 decomposition. Some of the products formed in the above changes inhibit 

 the development of mould, and the general conditions obtaining in the silo 

 are unfavourable to putrefaction Tne mass therefore remains good for food 

 for a long time. 



It is, however, not sterile. Certain bacteria are always present and attack 

 the softer celluloses (but not to any extent the resistant " fibre") producing 

 the humus, some of the fatty acids, and probal)iy thr succinic acid present in 

 silage. They also cai-ry several stages furthei' tlic decomposition of certain 

 of the nitrogen compounds, and produce thos(^ bodies which cannot be sup- 

 posed to arise from tryptic hydrolysis of pi'otein. Thus pentaniethylene 

 diamine is a well-known decomposition pi'oduct of lysin ; ornithin is known to 

 arise from arginin, and the absence of the latter body may be due to its 

 decomposition into ornithin and urea, which would further change into 

 ammonium carbonate. 



In the following scheme are set out the changes as the author supposes 

 them to take place. The lactic and malic acids might have arisen from the 

 amino acids or from the carbohydrate material ; the present experiments do 

 not enable one to decide this point. 



On the above hypothesis the changes essential to the production of silage — 

 the disappearance of sugar, the formation of volatile fatty acids, anH the 

 hydrolysis of protein — are all considered to be the result of the activity of 

 the living protoi)lasm or of the enzymes of the maize cell. The other changes, 

 due to the bacteria invariably present, are considered to be of purely secondary 

 importance, and merely have the eftect of complicating the product without 

 greatly altering its nature or even masking the primary changes. — {.Journal 

 of Agricultural Science). 



