1897.] PUBLIC DOCUMENT — No. 33. 91 



red clover, gave dextrose and xylose ; while that prepared 

 from the coflee bean, cocoanut and sesame cake, yielded 

 dextrose and mannose. There exist, therefore, dextroso-, 

 mannoso- and pentoso- celluloses. That the so-called crude 

 fibre is not pure cellulose, but in addition to both hexa- and 

 penta- cellulose contains more or less lignin, is probable from 

 the fact that it is colored a bright red by phloroglucin and 

 hydrochloric acid, and because it contains a higher percent- 

 age of carbon than pure cellulose. When the dried and 

 finely ground plant or seed is treated according to the 

 Weender method, a considerable portion of the lignin is 

 split off, and reckoned as extract matter. 



The term non-nitrogenous extract matter is meant to in- 

 clude all substances, not included within the other four 

 groups, that are removed by means of dilute acid and alkali. 

 In case of the grains, the extract matter is known to con- 

 sist largely of starch ; but when derived from coarse fodders, 

 leguminous seeds and many by-products, its composition has 

 been, until the investigations of To Hens and Schulze, but 

 little understood. 



To these carbohydrates that can be removed from the 

 plant by the action of dilute mineral acid and alkali, and 

 that are as a rule soluble in F. Schulze's reagent, E. Schulze 

 has applied the name hemi-cellulose. Under this head he 

 would bring the mother substances, dextran, levulan, man- 

 nan, galactan, araban and xylan, which yield, on inversion, 

 the sugars dextrose, levulose, mannose, galactose, arabinose 

 and xylose. It is the mother substances of these sugars and 

 probably others of a similar nature not yet identified, to- 

 gether with ready-formed sugars, starch, and a portion of 

 the lignin, as above alhided to, which constitute the extract 

 matter. These henii-celluloses are intermixed with the true 

 celluloses and ligno-celluloses in the cell walls of plants and 

 seeds. In some cases they have been recognized as reserve 

 material, and are used as food in the sprouting of the seed. 

 The levulan and mannan do not appear to be generally dis- 

 tributed. The araban and xvlan (pentosans), on the other 

 hand, constitute fully one-third of the extract matter of all 

 hays and straws ; they are quite prominent in tlie hull and 

 bran of different grains and seeds, and are even found in the 

 endosperm and cotyledons of many seeds. 



