OF THE ALIMENTARY CANAL 127 



peptonized milk. The albumin and starch were 

 probably not touched. Langdon Brown found no 

 difference in the urea of the urine, whether the 

 patients were given peptonized milk or normal saline. 

 Careful analysis of the figures given by Boyd and 

 Robertson, and also a number of observations made 

 by the present writer, furnish convincing evidence 

 that, as measured by the standard of the nitrogen 

 output in the urine, the absorption of nitrogenous 

 foodstuffs from the rectum is practically nil. 



Sharkey and others claim that a good deal of 

 nitrogen can be absorbed by the rectum, basing their 

 findings on the analysis of rectal washings ; but this 

 method is open to criticism, as sometimes, in spite of 

 washing out, the patient may pass an enormous 

 putrid evacuation. sho\ving that lavage was not 

 effectual. 



Now this failure to absorb might be due to one 

 of two causes. First, it may be that the large 

 intestine has no power of absorbing nitrogenous 

 foodstuffs in any form. Second, it may be that no 

 erepsin is present in its secretion, so that no amino- 

 acids are formed from the peptone of the enema. 

 The crucial experiment is, Can aminoacids be 

 absorbed ? 



To determine this the writer, with Dr. Bywaters, 

 has made daily analyses of nitrogen in the urine by 

 the Kjeldahl method in patients to whom enemata 

 were given, either of milk pancreatized for twenty- 

 four hours, so as to convert most of the protein into 

 aminoacids, or in other cases of synthetic amino- 

 acids (Merck). Usually ordinary ward nutrients, 



