CIEL) 
disease of Bartow and scorbut.*) May they not remain long a 
theoretically construed group. Investigations with regard to scorbut 
have already been taken in hand. Now we should be anxious 
to know which fermentation-products generate the symptoms of 
the disease, this however is the task of the chemist rather than 
mine. At all events we have in the first place to wait for what 
STAAL’S investigations concerning the acid that is formed, will 
teach us. 
Another series of experiments related to the facts, discovered by 
wy predecessors, that chickens fed either with unpeeled rice or 
with rice and raw meat, or with rice and Kadjang hidjoe ete. 
do not become ill at all, or do so later. 
When cultivating the acetifying bacteria, it appeared that they 
develop themselves only in that part of the rice that by cooking 
separates a pultaceous matter, which we call “starch”, and in India 
tadjen *). This starch is analyzed by the bacteria into water, gas, 
acid and perhaps unknown products. The more starch is formed 
by cooking, the more luxuriously the bacteria grow in such rice, 
the less starch, the less food for the bacteria, the less formation of 
gas and acid. 
Even by repeated cooking of rice the grains remain intact, the 
starch has however separated from them, and makes the grains 
stick together. and in these intervening spaces of starch one sees 
the bacteria grow rankly, and change it into water in which at last 
the grains float. 
White fully prepared rice produces much starch, cooked gaba 
(unpeeled rice) produces hardly any starch, sterilized gaba again 
produces some more starch. The longer the unpeeled rice is cooked, 
the more starch is obtained, and consequently it is to be understood 
that (Grins, Marsvsmrra) padi cannot entirely protect against Beri- 
beri. If one adds to fully prepared rice ferrihydroxid, eggs”), spirits, 
animal charcoal‘), fresh meat, much less starch is formed *). By 
1) Nocut and Horsr 
2) To the rice starch-works of J. Duyvis | owe the communication that a not 
unimportant part of the rice cannot be turned to starch, a considerable residue 
remains which is sold as food for cattle, it contains 87,74°/) of organic matter 
(Sraar). The percentage of starch of the various kinds of rice is very different. 
5) Marsusuira asserts that the addition of eggs to rice prevents Beri-beri. 
') These least. 
») Addition of these substances never impedes the growth of the bacteria and 
the fermentation, though it 's inferior on accoant of the inferior quantity of starch. 
