ORGANIC MATTER. 13 



ver as mere stony or earthy matter. All organic matter, 

 shows on examination, a certain structure or, form which is 

 visible to the eye or can be made so. This structure is 

 either cellular or fibrous, as may be seen in the pores of 

 wood or the fibers of various plants, and of muscular tissue; 

 and it serves to distinguish between these two classes of 

 matter. 



But there are many substances of organic origin which 

 do not exhibit any observable trace of organized structure; 

 as sugar, starch, gum, and yet these are formed in plants 

 in great abundance. They do not possess any cel- 

 lular or fibrous tissue and have never possessed any organs; 

 nevertheless as they are the productions of living organized 

 bodies, they are included in the general term of organized 

 matter. So the ash of plants which consists of mineral 

 matter only; and the decomposed dust of plants and ani- 

 mals are recognized as organic matter, and as such, have a 

 specially favorable effect in the soil upon the growth of 

 plants. So all the ultimate products of organic matter; the 

 charcoal made from wood, the vinegar, spirit, and tar, also 

 derived from wood by distillation; and the vinegar and 

 alcohol which are produced by the fermentation of sugar; 

 are all included in the general term as organized matter. 



The cells and fibers of organic matter are in fact the or- 

 gans or instruments of life by which the vital functions 

 are performed and growth effected. Thus the pores of 

 wood or the cells of a potato are centers of life, and as will 

 be hereafter explained, are able to effect a distinct re- 

 productive action; absorb nutriment, grow and produce 

 organs like themselves, and so increase the substance of the 

 plants of which they form a part. 



If we take any one of these forms of matter of either 

 class, excepting comparatively a few, and subject it to cer- 

 tain chemical processes we shall find that it is resolved or 

 separated into more than one, or several substances, as the 

 case may be. Thus a piece of limestone subjected to heat 

 which is a chemical process undergoes a very consid- 

 erable change by the separation of its component parts ; 



