200 ARON. 



addition to this vegetable diet, the ])co])le receive some animal food- 

 stuffs, which sliow variations on the different days both in I'egaid to their 

 protein content and in their caloric value. For this reason the variations 

 noted in the first table occur. We see from Table III that on certain days 

 of tlie \\eel<, beside the animal food, a native vegetable called mongo is 

 issued as food. This vegetable, according to our analysis, is very rich in 

 nitrogen. A very small amount of stimulants, tea, coffee or ginger root, 

 is also given to the prisoners. 



If we would compare these data with the standards given above 

 for Europeans, we must consider that the Filipino is of considerably 

 smaller stature than the European. While the latter has an average 

 weight of 65 kilos, the Filipino M^eigbs only about 50 to 55 kilos. This 

 means that the standard value of protein determined for Europeans 

 or Americans would have to be reduced by about 20 per cent when 

 applied to Filipinos. The caloric requirements of a living body depend 

 not upon its weight, but upon the extent of its surface. Now ap- 

 proximately the surface decreases only with the second power, while 

 the weight decreases with the third power; in addition, I believe we 

 should also consider that the Filipinos are thinner and taller than the 

 European of the same weight. These considerations render it probable 

 that the requirements in calories for Filipinos may be only about 10 per 

 cent less than those of the European standard. If we now compare the 

 Filipino food with that given to a European under similar conditions, 

 we find that the caloric value of the prisoners' food corresponds to that 

 of a workman in Europe or America, performing moderately hard labor, 

 and also to the caloric value given in the average German prison. We 

 have here a practical confirmat'ion of the introductory theoretical remarks 

 concerning the amount of calories required in the Tropics. The protein 

 content of the food seems, even if we make a reduction of 20 per cent from 

 the standard values, somewhat lower than that of the average European 

 diet. Our ideas in regard to the amount of protein required by a healthy 

 indixidual have recently undergone considerable changes. After Voit had 

 given his standards for protein, some investigators showed that many 

 people do not ingest the quantity this investigator thought necessary. At 

 the same time the physiological question concerning the mininmm quantity 

 of protein upon which a man is able to live has been extensively in- 

 vestigated. It is a fact that much less protein in the food than was 

 determined by Voit is sufficient to maintain life and health, and the 

 values given as necessary by Chittenden, who has done the most extensive 

 work in this direction, are considei'ably lower than the protein intake 

 of the Filipinos. Therefore, even if we regard the protein quantity of 

 the Filipino food as low, nevertheless, it is certainly sufficient. People 

 living on an almost pure vegetable diet always take a smaller amount of 

 protein than do meat eaters. The quantity of protein, for instance, taken 



