SOLID PARTS OF ANIMALS. 



Vauquelin showed that the liver of the skate, which is very 

 large compared to the size of the other viscera, contains more 

 than half its weight of a liquid fixed oil. It is well-known that 

 a similar observation applies to the liver of the cod and of various 

 other fishes. 



Braconnot pounded a quantity of ox -liver in a marble mortar, 

 mixed it with water, and passed the mixture through a piece of 

 cloth of a firm texture. The greatest part passed through the 

 cloth ; but a number of minute vessels remained behind. The 

 liquid thus filtered was muddy and somewhat milky. When 

 heated it coagulated, and a quantity of albumen collected toge- 

 ther at the bottom of the vessel. This precipitate was dried, re- 

 duced to powder, and digested in rectified oil of turpentine, 

 which dissolved a portion of fatty matter, to which the milky ap- 

 pearance of the liquid before coagulation was owing. The oil 

 of turpentine being distilled off, the fatty matter remaining had a 

 reddish-brown colour, and was viscid or almost solid. Its smell 

 and taste was similar to that of fried liver. It was insoluble in 

 water ; but soluble in alcohol of 0*833. When left long in con- 

 tact with caustic soda it was converted into soap. This fatty 

 matter, like cerebrote from the brain, contained a notable quan- 

 tity of phosphorus. 



When alcohol was employed to separate this fatty matter from 

 the liver, it dissolved along with it an animal substance, which 

 communicated to the fatty matter the property of mixing readily 

 with water, and of forming a sort of emulsion, from which it 

 could be precipitated by infusion of nut-galls. 



The albumen freed from the fatty matter by oil of turpentine, 

 when burnt, left phosphate of lime with a trace of iron and some 

 sulphate of lime. From these experiments it appears that the 

 coagulum by heat consisted of albumen, and a peculiar fattv mat- 

 ter containing phosphorus. 



The liquid from which this deposit had fallen reddened litmus- 

 paper. When concentrated by evaporation it deposited some 

 additional flocks of albumen, and left, when evaporated to dry- 

 ness, a brownish-yellow extractive matter, which remains soft, 

 and cannot be completely dried. This matter resembled much 

 the osmazome of Thenard, but wanted its peculiar taste and fla- 

 vour. Potash added to it did not evolve ammonia, nor did sul- 

 phuric acid evolve the smell of acetic acid. It contained no al- 



