I9I2] 'Alfred P. Lothrop 171 



writer repeated the demonstration described on page 59.^^ Instead, 

 however, of using a thin rubber bag in a muslin sheath, he employed 

 a i2-inch section of ordinary bunsen-burner tubing. The rubber 

 tube had been swollen to its maximum extension by immersion in 

 ether for about an hour previous to its use. It was then closed at 

 one end by the Insertion of a short, tightly fitting, section of a thick 

 glass rod, which was fastened by a ligature. After the swollen 

 tube had been filled with olive oil and a narrow glass tube about 

 10 feet in length (in two sections) had been tied into the open end 

 and held upright, the rubber-oil portion of the vertical tubulär appa- 

 ratus was completely immersed in ether in a tall, narrow cylinder. 

 The oil began to rise in the tube almost immediately, and rapidly 

 proceeded upward until the liquid emerged from the open top. 



23. Some interesting properties of thymol. William J. 

 GiES. During the course of recent experiments on enzymes as pos- 

 sible factors in the development of edema/^ we had occasion to 

 study the effect of trypsin on elastin in ammonium hydroxid Solu- 

 tions containing a biological electrolyte (NaCl). To our surprise 

 we not only failed to obtain the swelling results which we had pre- 

 viously observed under similar conditions/^ but the elastin particles 

 in use gradually became green, ultimately blue. With repeated 

 shaking, the elastin particles were more deeply colored, and the 

 supernatant liquid slowly became green; finally, bluish green. The 

 color of the particles slowly diminished in intensity as the pigment 

 accumulated in the liquid. Unlike the elastin used in the previous 

 experiments, this product had been prepared about 10 years before. 

 The fresh-ligament hash had been put in water and preserved there 

 with considerable alcoholic thymol Solution; later, had been put in 

 alcohol; ultimately, had been dried and bottled. The main supply 

 of the dry elastin smelled strongly of thymol. 



Some of the above-mentioned green and blue ammoniacal liquids, 

 when shaken with ether or toluene, were quickly transformed into 

 purplish, then reddish mixtures. The ether layer on the quiescent 

 liquid was bright red — all green and blue had disappeared from the 



" Gies : Biochemical Bulletin, 1912, ii, p. 55. 

 " Eider and Gies : Ibid., 1912, i, p. 540. 

 *' Tracy and Gies : Ibid., 1912, i, p. 472. 



