860 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. [Vol. 36 



which appears to be confined to seven southeastern States from North Carolina 

 to Louisiana, inclusive. Tests of insecticides showed that both lime-sulphur 

 and potassium sulphid caused a mortality of 99 per cent, whereas nicotin sul- 

 phate destroyed less than 5 per cent. 



Contribution to the knowledge of the life history and habits of Tychius 

 5-punctatus, G. Gbandi {Bol. Lab. Zool. Gen. e Agr. R. Scuola Sup. Agr. Por- 

 tici, 10 {1915), pp. 103-119, figs. 6). — Injury caused by this weevil to beans in 

 the commune of Ruvo di Puglia, Italy, led to the studies here reported. 



FOODS— HUMAN NUTRITION. 



Digestibility of some vegetable fats, C. F. Langwoethy and A. D. Holmes 

 (U. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 505 (1917), pp. 20). — Employing the same methods as 

 those used in earlier work in the study of the digestibility of animal fats 

 (E. S. R., 34, p. 364), the authoi's report the results of a study of the digesti- 

 bility of vegetable fats, viz, cottonseed, peanut, coconut, and sesame oils, 

 and coco butter. These fats were incorporated in blancmange or cornstarcTi 

 pudding, which was given with a basal ration of wheat biscuits, oranges, sugar, 

 and tea or coffee. Normal young men served as subjects of the experiments. 

 The following quotations are from the authors' conclusions: 



" With allowance for metabolic products, the coefficients of digestibility have 

 been found to be for olive oil, 97.8; for cottonseed oil, 97.8; for peanut oil, 

 98.3 ; for coconut oil, 97.9 ; for sesame oil, 98 ; for cocoa butter, 94.9 per 

 cent. These values indicate that the vegetable fats studied, with the excep- 

 tion of cocoa butter, have for all practical purposes the same digestibility and 

 are utilized as completely as the animal fats. 



" The melting points of these fats are considerably lower than body tem- 

 perature (37° C), and in accordance with the theory that fats of low-melting 

 points are more thoroughly digested than the harder fats, it has been found that 

 the vegetable fats studied, with the exception of cocoa butter, are utilized prac- 

 tically completely by the body. 



" The average amounts of fat eaten per subject daily were 73 gm. of olive, 

 86 gm. of cottonseed, 98 gm. of peanut. 64 gm. of coconut, and 90 gm. of sesame 

 oils. Moreover, as much as 103, 125, 113, 131, and 106 gm. of these fats, 

 respectively, were eaten by one of the subjects for a 3-day period without any 

 physiological disturbance. In the first eight experiments with cocoa butter, 

 in which an average of only 51 gm. of this fat was eaten daily, no abnormal 

 conditions were noted and the apparent digestibility of fat was 90.7 per cent. 

 In those experiments, however, in which from 82 to 138 gm. of cocoa butter 

 were consumed daily and 86.5 per cent utilized, a decided laxative effect was 

 noted. Accordingly it may be concluded that the limit of tolerance Is less 

 for cocoa butter than for the other fats studied. 



" The evidence collected in these experiments affords additional proof that the 

 digestibility of protein and carbohydrate contained in the different fat diets 

 was not materially affected by the nature of the fat or by the amount eaten. . . . 



"Judging from the results of the investigation as a whole, it is reasonable to 

 conclude that olive, cottonseed, peanut, coconut, and sesame oils are very 

 completely and readily available to the body and that they may, like the animal 

 fats, be satisfactorily used for food purposes." 



Studies on the digestibility of some animal fats, C. F. Langwokthy and 

 A. D. Holmes {V. S. Dept. Agr. Bui. 507 (1917), pp. 20).— This bulletin reports 

 data regarding the digestibility of chicken, goose, beef-brisket, egg-yolk, and 

 fish fats, as well as cream. The experiments are in continuation of earlier 

 work (E. S. R., 34, p. 364). As In the above experiments, normal young men 



