A Study of Grou'fh 5 



increase in the amount of food be given, this maximum should 

 be pushed higher. 



Unfortunately the records in the tables do not show conclusively 

 that this is actually the case, but there is a certain indication which 

 may be interpreted as bearing on this question. The uniform 

 loss in many of the sets after February 19 and March 5, lasting 

 for about five or six weeks, cannot be attributed to the fact that 

 the maximum had been reached, although it might have been 

 that they were approaching the maximum. This seems the case 

 because all of the sets had not been fed as much as 153 mg. of 

 beef for eighteen weeks, as had been Set A^ (Table I), so that they 

 cannot be supposed to have reached their limit of size at the same 

 time. The general loss was probably due to some general factor 

 which affected many of the sets alike. It may have been due to 

 the breeding season. After five weeks of loss, Set A^ was fed 

 three times, 153 mg. a week (459 mg.), and after a week's time 

 regained almost the entire loss. 



The weekly percentage increments do not always show a 

 decrease as a limit is approached, because of the varied fluctua- 

 tions from week to week. By taking definite periods, however, 

 such as eighteen weeks in the case of Set A^ (Table I), the per- 

 centage increment or rate during the first nine weeks, 23.3, will 

 be found greater than during the second half, which was 21.5. 

 The absolute increment, however, during the first half was less 

 (545 mg.) than that during the last half of the period, which was 

 629 mg. 



In Set C- (Table III), consisting also of six individuals, which 

 had been fed 102 mg. of beef a week during a period of eighteen 

 weeks, the rate during the first half was 14.5 per cent., and that 

 during the second half was 9. i per cent. In other sets the differ- 

 ence has also proved constant, as in Set D^ (Table IV), and Set 

 E^ (Table VI). 



Ill THE RATE OF STARVATION 



Set B^ (Table II), consisting of six individuals, was starved 

 for seventeen weeks, at the end of which time one individual died, 

 indicating that the minimum limit of weight for the set was nearly 

 reached. 



