SOLUBILITY OF THE VENOM GRANULES. 47 



granules to have decreased much more than in control. In other experiments 

 with distilled water a large number of the granules disappeared within the first 

 few minutes. 



In mixtures of the emulsion and distilled H 2 the granules are not as well 

 preserved as in 0.85 per cent NaCl solution; they are, however, not as rapidly 

 dissolved as in a diluted solution of alkali. Glycerin also causes a disappear- 

 ance of many granules; at least the granules become less visible a short time 

 after the mixture with the glycerin. 



In one experiment (8n), 1 c.c. absolute alcohol was added to 0.5 c.c. emul- 

 sion. The liquid cleared almost immediately, but showed a slight cloudiness. 

 Microscopic examination, after 3 minutes, showed no granules, only an albu- 

 minous precipitate in which a few indistinct granules were intermixed and a 

 few apparent nuclei. 



E. TESTS WITH FORMALIN. 



In a mixture of equal amounts of emulsion and of 10 per cent formalin dis- 

 solved in 0.85 per cent NaCl solution instead of water, the granules and rods 

 remain distinctly better preserved than in a 10 per cent solution of formalin in 

 distilled H 2 O. The limited number of animals which could be used for these 

 experiments, and the fact that each series of experiments meant the sacrifice of 

 an animal, necessitated the limitation in the number of our experiments; yet 

 we believe our results of sufficient interest to warrant publication. We hope 

 that our experiments may be repeated, and, if necessary, in some details cor- 

 rected in future investigations, but we believe that the following summary will 

 on the whole be found to be correct. 



SUMMARY. 



(1) The granules are readily soluble in w r eak solutions of HC1. They dis- 

 solve quickly in N 20 and N 50 solutions, but only more slowly dissolve in a 

 N 100 or N/200 solution. 



(2) The granules dissolve very quickly in weak solutions of NaOH, even 

 such minute strengths as N /100 and N/200 dissolving them nearly as quickly 

 as the stronger solutions. 



(3) The granules are dissolved only very slowly in normal salt solutions. 

 Hypertonic solutions of NaCl preserve the granules better than isotonic 

 solutions. 



(4) The granules disappear more rapidly when the normal salt solutions 

 containing them are strongly diluted with distilled water or with glycerin, but 

 solution is not quite as rapid as in the case of HC1 and NaOH solutions. 



(5) Solutions of formalin dissolved in normal salt solution preserve the 

 granules better than 10 per cent formalin prepared with distilled water. 



(6) The rods and spheres react in a similar manner toward the various 

 reagents. 



Under normal conditions the granules probably are dissolved before the 

 venom enters the gland-ducts. At least we do not find granules in the contents 



