Oxygen, as will be seen, far surpasses the 

 other chemical elements (except fluorine) in 

 the amount of energy liberated in the process 

 of its chemical union with other substances. 



Accordingly, it may be concluded that, on 

 the whole, oxidations are the best chemical 

 source of energy ; reductions the best means 

 of storing energy by chemical processes ; 

 and that among oxidations and reductions 

 those of hydrogen especially, and then those 

 of carbon, are associated with the largest 

 energy transformations. 



This is the last argument which I have to 

 present, but it is one of the most potent. The 

 very chemical changes, which for so many 

 other reasons seem to be best fitted to be- 

 come the processes of physiology, turn out to 

 be the very ones which can divert the greatest 



