292 BOTANICAL GAZETTE [APRIL 
considerable free fatty acid is formed during the germination of oily 
seeds (GREEN 17, SCHMIDT 50). MILLER (39) finds, in the germi- 
nation of Helianthus annuus, that the quantity of free acid in the 
hypocotyl increases rapidly at the beginning of germination. 
IvANow (24, 25, 26) studied the metabolism of fats in ripening 
and in germinating seeds. He finds that the rapidity of oil trans- 
formation in germinating seeds depends on the fatty acid com- 
ponents of that particular oil. The oil of flax and of hemp contains 
TABLE III 
ACIDITY OF EMBRYO OF CRATAEGUS GLORIOSA 
Hypocoryis | COTYLEDONS 
NT/ N/20 ou! N/20 KOH 
Grete 1/0.) cocper Grams |N/ af pues cc. per 
gram Hs gram 
WAAL erica se 0.0267 | Slightly | 0.00 | Air-dry | 0.5374 | 0.20 0.37 
basic 
es Re ee ee eee oer O:10 ‘| 30 days |< 52 6.5. ae 0.40 
Se er eb ee ea cau O30 Wi ess a3 3% 
oo 2 ae 0.0444 | 0.04 °.90 | Cots. 0.8162 | 0.35 0.42 
white 
24 Oni) ek: 0.360 0.45 t.24 | Cots. 0.1914 | 0.60 3-13 
yellow 
Germinated (hyp. 
OOF oy os 2. 0.5967 | 0.65 1.09 | Cots. 0.3907 | 1.20 3-07 
green 
(in light 
week) 
es ee 0.3810 | 0.60 ey es 1: 7009" | 1.90 2.67 
the less saturated acids—linolenic and linoleic—and is trans- 
formed much more quickly than that of rape, which contains oleic 
acid. The less saturated acids disappear rapidly (forming carbo- 
hydrates) from the seedlings and cause the very low acid number 
of flax and hemp. Unsaturated acids of the oleic acid type are 
more stable and inactive; therefore rape shows a higher acid num- 
ber than flax or hemp. The acids in the seeds of Crataegus were 
not identified; this will be done later. 
DELEANO (7) studied the chemical changes during the germina- 
tion of Ricinus communis. He finds that the acidity and the 
