866 EXPiERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



" Fowls from wliicli all food is withheld aud ouly water allowed, develop 

 multiple neuritis in some cases. 



" Fowls starved on reduced amounts of a neuritis-preventing undermilled 

 rice acquii'e multiple neuritis in some cases. . . . 



"The signs, symptoms, aud nerve appearances are identical in neuritis pro- 

 duced by inanition aud in that caused by feeding polished rice. . . . 



" In neuritis-producing rice and in beriberi-producing dietaries both the 

 phosphorus and the i)otassium are markedly reduced in amount, the latter in 

 greater degree than the former. 



"As an index of the beriberi-producing ix)wer of a given rice, reduction in the 

 potassium content is probably quite as reliable as reduction in the phosphorus 

 content." 



Practical experiences with beriberi and unpolished rice in the Philippines, 

 y. G. Heiser (Philippine Jour. Sd., B. Med. Sci., 6 (1911), No. 3, pp. 229-233).— 

 Information is summarized regarding the efforts made to encourage the use of 

 unpolished rice in the Philippines and the success which has attended it. 



For purposes of convenience "a rice containing less than 0.4 per cent of 

 phosphorus pentoxid is regarded as polished and that which contains a greater 

 percentage of phosphorus pentoxid as unix)lished rice." 



An attempt to secure legislation regarding the use of unpolished rice in the 

 Philippines is briefly discussed. 



Studies on the protective power of bran in a polished rice diet, L. Breaxjdat 

 (Bui. Sac. Path. Exot., 4 (1911), No. 7, pp. Ji9S-5 02) .—In experiments with 

 chickens rice bran and a corresponding amount of an aqueous extract of rice 

 bran exercised a protective effect. A study of the nitrogen content showed that 

 the protective power was not directly ascribable to the additional amount of 

 nitrogen supplied. The absence of fat, cellulose, starch, etc., in the extract 

 was additional evidence of the inactivity of these substances in preventing dis- 

 ease ascribable to the use of polished rice in large proportion. 



Dig'estion in fever, J. B. Nichols (Amer. Jour. Med. Sck, 1.^2 (1911), July, 

 pp. 93-95). — From a summary of data on the subject the author concludes that 

 the average reduction of digestion during fever is not over 5 to 10 per cent. 

 The bearing of these facts on feeding in fever is discussed. 



Organic matter in the expired breath, M. J. Rosenau and H. L. Amoss 

 (Jour. Med. Research, 25 (1911), No. 1, pp. 35-8^, figs. 5). — Using the reaction 

 of anaphylaxis, the authors conclude from experiments in which the liquid 

 obtained by condensing the moisture from the expired breath of man was 

 injected into guinea pigs that the presence of organic matter in expired breath 

 has been demonstrated. 



" The logical conclusion from our results is that protein substances under 

 certain circumstances may be volatile. It seems unlikely that such a complex 

 molecule should possess the power of passing into the air in a gasseous form. 

 The volatility, however, now in question may resemble that solubility which 

 deals with particles in suspension in a physico-chemical state (colloidal sus- 

 pension). The protein may simply be carried over in ' solution' in the watery 

 vapor. 



" Our experiments are too few to state that albuminous substances such as 

 egg white, milk, or blood serum in vitro is ' volatile.' HoweA'er, they are 

 sufficiently suggestive to stimulate further work along this line." 



A few experiments to determine the effect of time, temperature, acids, and 

 alkalis upon the organic matter in the expired breath are recorded, but the 

 data are regarded as too limited to warrant conclusions. " It is of practical 

 importance to collect further information along these lines. It would also be 



