26 SCHMIDT ON THE COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY 



disturbance of equilibrium in the female organism produces, and 

 the result of which we designate "milk-fever." The sugar is taken 

 up in a similar arrangement of its elements ; the fat and albu- 

 minates of the blood, which a short time before flowed to the 

 viterine vessels, now pass to the mammary glands ; thus no com- 

 parison can be admitted. 



But chitine contains exactly the elements of carbon, water and 

 ammonia, or, what is the same, acetic acid, sugar, gum, starch 

 or woody fibre, and ammonia, — in our experiments with the 

 test-tubes of the chemist it is resolved into these elements ; we 

 might in fact be induced to attribute to the simple organism of 

 an articulate animal the capability of forming its tegument from 

 woody-fibre and ammonia, did not the above-mentioned obser- 

 vations on the new formative process oppose such a view. We 

 may regard the formula Cj^ H14 N O,, as the most simple expres- 

 sion of the analysis, which corresponds with sufficient accuracy 

 to the results obtained. 



Calculation Experiment. Number of 



As Cj^Hi^ NOj,. Maximum. Minimum. Mean, experiments. 



Carbon . 46-83 46-80 46-48 46-66" 



Hydrogen 6-42 6-77 6-43 6.60. 



Nitrogen . 6-42 6-79 6-33 6-53 9 



The formula contains the elements of — 



Carbon . . C,7 



Water. . . H„ 0„ 



Ammonia. . H, N 



;} 



7 



from which the equations representing the decomposition by a 

 high temperature and concentrated acids are self-evident. If we 

 compare the empirical formula, i. e. the simplest expression of 

 the former analyses of muscle in equivalents = Cg Hg N O3 : 



Calculation 

 As Cg Hj N O3. Mean of experiments. 

 Ca.bon . . . 52-22 52-24 



Hydrogen . . 6-52 7-15 



Nitrogen. . . 15-21 15-30 



with the value of chitine as found in the same manner, we have — 1 



Craw-fish/ ^^^^'^^^i^^hNO^ 

 Craw fish i^j^^^^j^ C3 HgNOa 



C,9 Hg Og 



