EFFECT OF ALCOHOL ON FOWL 



183 



TABLE 6 



Shoiving in summary form the effect of continued administration of alcohol (etJiijl 

 and methyl) and ether, by the inhalation method, upon the treated individuals 

 themselves. 



CHARACTER OR QUAI ITY STUDIED 



L Mean number, per bird of consecutive 

 claj^s of treatment 



2. Net percentage mortabty (to February 



1, 1916) exchisive of birds acciden- 

 tally killed 



3. Mean body weight of females (in gnis.) 



4. Mean egg production per bird, 14 



months 



5. General activity 



6. Sexual activity 



TREATED 



INDIVIDUALS 



344.2 







3266 



183.97 

 Reduced 

 Reduced 



UNTREATED 

 CONTROLS 



41.0 

 2953 



180.80 

 Normal 

 Normal 



NET RESULT 



ON 

 ALCOHOLISTS 



+ 



holists'^ have been favorably affected; a minus sign that the}' 

 have been unfavorably affected as compared with untreated 

 controls. A zero indicates that no effect of the treatment, one 

 way or the other, has been detected. 



From these summarized data it is possible to gain a tolerably 

 clear comprehension of the objective happenings in these experi- 

 ments so far. The treated animals themselves are not con- 

 spicuously worse or better than their untreated control sisters 

 or brothers. The survivors, i.e., those not killed by accident, 

 after roughly a year and a half ^ of daily treatment, are becoming 

 a bit too fat for their best physiological economy, but except 

 for that point, and the reduced activity which goes with it, the>' 

 are very much like normal fowls. Their apparently much bet- 

 ter mortality record is indeed conspicuous, but in view of the 

 small numbers involved, no great significance can be attached 

 to it at present. It is probable that as the experiments proceed 

 this superiority in relative mortality will be considerably dimin- 

 ished. However, as has already been pointed out, the effect of 



^ I adopt this convenient noun from Pearson to denote individuals subjected 

 to the influence of alcohol. 



^ It should be noted that the mean of item 1 in Table 6 is greatly reduced by 

 the fact that all birds, including the methyls and ethers killed in the tanks, are 

 used in its calculation. 



