Gases of the Blood 941 



in the blood. In this reference I made a fairly large number of 

 experiments to see in what proportions oxygen and carbonic acid 

 escape from the blood, when the pressure is gradually lowered. 



The experiment was set up in the following manner: after a 

 partial vacuum had been made in the barometric pump, I placed 

 in it the blood to be analyzed; then I extracted, by successive 

 strokes of the pump, a part at the same time of the air which 

 remained and the gases which had escaped from the blood; I con- 

 tinued thus until nothing more came out. The gases extracted by 

 each of the successive strokes of the pump were then subjected to 

 just as many analyses. Here are the results of one of these analyses 

 by stages: 



Experiment DCLX. January 23. 100 cc. of blood taken from the 

 brachial artery of a large shepherd dog. 



The gas pump was brought to 16.5 cm. of actual pressure; I 

 introduce the blood, agitate it for a moment, and with the first stroke 

 of the pump extract 92 cc. of gas .... A 



At a second extraction, I secure 85 cc. of gases . . . . B 



At the 3rd (pressure 12.5 cm.) 61 cc. of gases . . . . C 



At the 4th (pressure 5 cm.) 25 cc. of gases . . . . D 



At the 5th (up to a vacuum) 2.5 cc. of gases . . . . E 



The hot bath was boiling; I then placed in the receiver a little 

 sulphuric acid diluted with boiled distilled water. 1 cc. more of C0 2 

 was extracted. 



The analyses show that: 



Gas A contained neither On nor C0 2 , coming from the blood. 



Gas B contained 2 1.9 cc. and CO, 1.9 cc. 



GasC contained 2 13.9 cc. and C0 2 17.8 cc. 



Gas D contained 2 4.6 cc. and C0 2 12.0 cc. 



Gas E contained O, 0.4 cc. and C0 2 1.6 cc. 



The total contained Oa 20.8 cc. and C0 2 33.3 cc. 



CO. 



The ratio between the carbonic acid and the oxygen was 



2 



then successively: in B, 1; in C, 1.3; in D, 2.6; in E, 4. The total ratio 

 being 6, it results that during the first phase of the experiment, there 

 escaped from the blood proportionately more oxygen than carbonic 

 acid; the contrary took place in the second phase. 



Other similar experiments give the same evidence, and it would 

 be useless to give the details of them. Furthermore, when I placed 

 the blood in a perfect vacuum and analyzed separately the gases 

 obtained by successive strokes of the pump, I always got a similar 

 result. Experiments made on animals subjected to low pressures 

 did the same (See Table X, Col. 4, 5) . 



And so, from whatever side we approach the problem, we see 



