THE PHENOMENA OF ADSORPTION. 461 



the precipitate reproduces a mixture which is very like normal 

 bovine serum. 



In view of this relative dissociation of agglutination and hemoly- 

 sis, it may be that the conglutinin is not a simple substance, or 

 that it is a simple substance occurring in different physical 

 conditions or conditions of greater or less solution in serum. If 

 we like, we may regard it as a more or less fine colloid solution. 

 This fact is evidently important to study. The fact of interest 

 for the moment is, as we have brought out again in this article, that 

 the hemolysis and conglutination by bovine serum follow a general 

 law. 



To summarize: The conclusions of the present article corrob- 

 orate the ideas of Bordet and Gay of two years ago. The objec- 

 tions that have been offered to these ideas by Sachs and Bauer 

 have no foundation. Contrary to the opinions of Ehrlich and 

 Sachs, bovine sensitizers unite perfectly well with corpuscles when 

 the alexin is absent. The hypothesis of the existence of a com- 

 plementophilic group in sensitizers does not agree with the facts. 

 As for the special properties of bovine serum, they are due to a 

 particular substance, the conglutinin, the principal characters 

 of which are now clearly brought out. We may add that this 

 substance is precipitated for the greater part by dialysis and seems 

 to manifest a real affinity for alexin, and therefore tends to pre- 

 cipitate itself on sensitized and alexinized corpuscles. 



