PAET SECOND. 



THE CHEMISTRY OF THE FOOD OF THE ANIMALS AT THE 

 FAEM, WITH RELATION TO THE COMPOSITION OF THEIR 

 BODIES. 



ORGANIC nature is entirely built up of materials derived 

 from the mineral kingdom. Under the head of mineral 

 kingdom falls everything at the earth's surface which is not 

 organic that is, everything which is not at present an or- 

 ganic body, or which does not bear indications of having 

 once been endowed with life. Some substances, such as coal, 

 shells, marl, and the like, which manifestly once belonged to 

 organic nature, are more conveniently spoken of as the re- 

 mains of organic nature now mineralised. The mineral 

 kingdom, with this reservation, includes not only the solid 

 parts of the crust of the earth, but also the liquid parts as 

 water ; and the elastic parts as the air of the atmosphere, and 

 all gaseous bodies. Organic nature consists of the vegetable 

 kingdom and the animal kingdom, and all the members of 

 each of those kingdoms are regarded as being endowed with 

 life. The functions or great offices fulfilled by the members 

 of the vegetable kingdom are almost solely those of vegeta- 

 tion and reproduction ; the members of the animal kingdom, 

 besides the functions of vegetation, or nutrition, and the 

 functions of reproduction, almost uniformly possess what are 



