STORAGE, RESPIRATION, AND GROWTH-. 13 



sample were analyzed, the remainder being kept for some time in a dry 

 place at an even temperature, when another analysis was made. No 

 figures were given, and changes in the sugar only are reported, but 

 these changes were remarkable, because, while the invert sugar 

 remained nearly constant, the sucrose increased, calculated either on 

 the basis of juice or on that of soluble solids. This was considered as 

 a very curious change to take place in an acid fruit. It is the more 

 notable when it is remembered that the green fruit contains no starch. 



Cahours a noted that ripe oranges evolved carbon dioxid, consuming 

 oxygen at the same time, and that when all the oxygen was used up 

 the carbon dioxid evolution still continued. It also continued in an 

 atmosphere of nitrogen. 



Chatin 6 considered that the carbon dioxid evolved by ripening 

 fruits resulted from the oxidation of the tannin, since, as the fruit 

 ripened, tannin disappeared. 



Fremy 6 ' called attention to the three periods in the life history of a 

 fruit growth, ripening, and decay. 



Corewinder^ gave an analysis of ripe bananas, and later 6 studied 

 bananas from ripeness to decay during a period of eighteen days, dur- 

 ing which sugars were determined at 10 different times. The sucrose 

 fell from 15.90 to 2.84 per cent; total sugar from 21.80 to 14.68 per 

 cent; and invert sugar increased from 3.90 to 11.84 per cent. 



Beyer^ studied the growth of gooseberries, analyzing them every 

 few days from the time when the fruit was very small until it was 

 ripe.- The complete analysis of the fruit at each picking is reported, 

 including sugar, acid, protein, ash, fat, and nitrogen-free residue. No 

 determinations of sucrose were made. 



A notice of work done 'by Pasteur in 1866 is found in a review of 

 literature on the ripening of grapes by Fitz (p. 14). Pasteur cast 

 doubt upon the idea that the acid in ripening grapes gave rise to sugar, 

 by discovering that in sour varieties the acid actually increased during 

 ripening. 



Petit 9 ' published discussions on the ripening of grapes. He con- 

 sidered that during ripening the sugar came from the cellulose in the 

 fruit, the cellulose first changing to acid by oxidation, and the acid 

 then becoming sugar with the evolution of carbon dioxid. Both 

 sucrose and reducing sugar were found in the leaves of the grape, 

 cheny, and peach, but in the grape itself only reducing sugar was 

 present. 



Compt. rend., 1864, 58: 495 and 653. 



&Ibid., 1864, 58: 576. 



'Ibid., p. 656. 



^Ibid., 1863, 57: 781. 



<?Ann. agron., 1876, 2: 429. 



/Landw. Versuchs-Stat. , 1865, 7:355. 



0Compt. rend., 1869, 69: 760; and ibid., 1873, 77: 944. 



