October 25, 1907] 



SCIENCE 



561 



under each genus. Altogether there are 258 

 forms, of which 161 are species or subspecies, 

 the others being classed as varieties. Many 

 varieties and several subspecies are new, but 

 described only in Russian. The habits and 

 distribution in Eussia of each species is given 

 often in much detail. The Caucasus region 

 appears to be the richest in species. The 

 author recog-uizes but four subfamilies: 

 CamponotinaB, Dolichoderinse, Myrmecinse and 

 Ponerinse. 



Nathan Banks 

 U. S. Depaetment of Agricumuee 



DIET AND ENDURANCE AT BRUSSELS 

 Mlle. De. J. loTEYKO, head of the laboratory 

 at the University of Brussels, and Mlle. Varia 

 Kipiani, student in science, have published a 

 monograph of seventy-seven pages : " En- 

 quete Scientifique sur les Vegetariens de 

 Bruxelles." ^ In this monograph the question 

 of vegetarianism is studied by several methods. 

 The authors have become convinced that the 

 vegetarian regime is for the most part a more 

 rational one than the highly nitrogenous diet 

 ordinarily prevailing in Western Europe and 

 America. 



In the brief introduction, general considera- 

 tions in regard to diet are mentioned and 

 special emphasis given to the subject of toxins. 

 The authors quote, in behalf of their conclu- 

 sions, the eminent French dietitian, Armand 

 Gautier, " who, without himself being a vege- 

 tarian, praises the good effects of the vege- 

 tarian regime." The authors quote Gautier as 

 follows : 



The vegetarian regime, modified by the addition 

 of milk, of fat, of butter, of eggs, has great ad- 

 vantages. It adds to the alkalinity of the blood, 

 accelerates oxidation, diminishes organic wastes 

 and toxins ; it exposes one mvich less than the 

 ordinary regime to skin maladies, to arthritis, to 

 congestions of internal organs. This regime tends 

 to make us pacific beings and not aggressive and 

 violent. It is practical and rational. 



The authors, while apparently classifying 

 themselves as advocates of vegetarianism, 

 admit that in certain cases it is necessary to 

 prescribe meat as a " medicament " — " just as 



' Brussels, Henry Lamertin. 



one prescribes sometimes alcohol and other 

 poisons." The authors also observe that the 

 transition to a vegetarian diet should be 

 gradual. 



The personal history is traced of forty-three 

 vegetarians of Brussels. Among other inter- 

 esting observations is the following: 



For the most part the vegetarians appear 

 j-ounger than their age; notably the ladies are 

 distinguished by their clear and fresh complexion. 



The experiments conducted by Miles, 

 loteyko and Kipiani are restricted to vege- 

 tarians who have been such for several years. 

 The experiments were, for the most part, com- 

 parisons of strength and endurance. So far 

 as strength is concerned, very little difference 

 was discovered between vegetarians and 

 " carnivores." In endurance, on the other 

 hand, a very remarkable difference was found, 

 the vegetarians surpassing the carnivores from 

 50 to 200 per cent., according to the method 

 of measurement. 



This result agrees with the experiment on 

 nine Tale students described in Science.' 

 These subjects, by dint of thorough mastica- 

 tion, gradually lost their taste for flesh foods. 

 At the end of five months, while not becoming 

 vegetarians, they had reduced their consump- 

 tion of flesh foods to one sixth of the amount 

 to which they had originally been accustomed. 

 Their strength remained practically stationary, 

 but their endurance, according to the gym- 

 nasium tests, was increased on an average by 

 over 90 per cent. 



The method of measuring endurance used 

 by the Belgian investigators was by means of 

 the Mosso ergograph. One of the fingers is 

 used to raise a weight as far as possible. As 

 the experiment proceeds and fatigue sets in, 

 the height to which the weight can be raised 

 is gi-adually reduced until no further contrac- 

 tions are possible. If a curve be constructed 

 representing the height of the successive con- 

 tractions, it is called a " curve of fatigue," and 

 it is found that this curve is "different for 

 different individuals, but is constant for the 

 same individual from one day to another and 

 even after an interval of several years, if the 



= N. S., Vol. XXIV., No. 620, Nov. 16, 1906. 



