496 Experiments &9 Obfervations 
four ounces Troy, into a quart bottle contain- 
ing common air; and introduced; at the fame 
time, two {mall bulbs of the fame kind: into 
another bottle of equal capacity. The veflels 
were then fecurely ftopped, the corks. being 
covered with wax and pieces of wet bladder. 
The two bulbs, that were inclofed apart, began to 
vegetate before the end of March; and had 
fprouts nearly three incheslong, before the middle 
of April: No figns of vegetation ever appeared in 
the larger parcel. The two bottles were opened 
on the twenty-fecond of May, being firft in- 
verted in water, when a quantity of gas, con- 
taining a confiderable: portion of carbonic.\acid, 
iffued from both of them; particularly from that 
where the onions weighing four ounces were 
lodged, which continued to difcharge numerous 
bubbles of a fcetid elaftic fluid through the 
water, for more than a quarter of an hour, 
which wasas long as I attended to the fubject. 
The fprouts of the two bulbs were flaccid, and 
evidently, ina ftate of decay: their vegetation 
undoubtedly ceafed when the oxygene in the bottle 
was confumed; upon which ‘the putrefadtive 
fermentation commenced, and deftroyed_ their 
texture. The Onions of the other parcel did 
not vegetate when expofed to the atmofphere, 
but became foft and rotted. The great dif- 
charge of gas, which took place when the bottle 
was 
