
{ 
IMPORTANT NEW EXPERIMENTS 129 
temperature of 115° F. (46° C.). This important 
fact was ascertained while experiments were being 
made with hay-infusions and milk which had pre- 
viously been subjected to destructive temperatures 
considerably higher than 212° F. 
Soon after, I discovered that an incubating or 
generating temperature as high as 122° F. (50° C.) 
may be had recourse to with advantage in dealing 
with some fluids. Organic infusions which would 
otherwise have remained barren and free from all 
signs of fermentation, have under its influence 
rapidly become corrupt and turbid. But although 
the high temperature proves to be so favourable for 
initiating chemical changes of a fermentative type in 
some organic fluids, it must not be assumed that 
it would be equally provocative in respect to all of 
them. The conditions most favourable for the initia- 
tion of such changes must be separately studied for 
each kind of fluid with which experiments are being 
made, since important specific differences may be 
encountered. I have already, however, ascertained 
that this high temperature of 122° F. (50° C.) is just 
as favourable for the fermentation of milk and of 
hay-, turnip-, and other vegetable infusions, as it is 
for urine. | 
Shortly after my first announcement of this fact 
in June 1876,! it was made known by Professor 
Cohn? that Dr Eidam had also discovered that 
certain organisms would grow and multiply rapidly 
at this high temperature in infusions of hay, though 
1 Proceedings of the Royal Society, No. 172, p. 149. 
2 Beitrige zur Biologie der Pflanzen, Bd. 2, 1876, p. 268. 
I 
