134 PROFESSOR JOHN GIBSON ON 
necessary water, such reactions give place, during the germination of seeds, to 
catabolic hydrolysis, as in food digestion generally, both by plants and animals. 
In this direction the author has obtained what he regards as conclusive 
experimental evidence of the usefulness of the hypothesis of a tendency towards 
increased specific conductivity in relation to plant chemistry. This evidence bears 
upon the two classical examples of catabolic enzymatic reactions in seeds which 
are afforded by the splitting up of the glucosides, amygdaline and potassium 
myronate. By the use of the hypothesis the following simple experiments were 
suggested, and their results correctly predicted. ‘he experiments consisted simply 
in mixing ordinary mustard powder and crushed bitter almonds respectively with 
the salt solutions which are given in Table III., some of which are premaximal and 
some ultramaximal, and then observing whether the characteristic pungency of allyl 
sulphocyanate or the smell of benzaldehyde became perceptible, and in what time. 
TaseE III. 
Relation to | 
Maximal Electrolyte. Per cent. ir 10? Kinax.* | 103K. 10%y. 
Solution. 
Ultra Lithium chloride. ; , : 23°90 5°6 168 161 t 
Pre % % . , : ; 12°62 30 ba 140 a 
Pre Sodium chloride (saturated) , : 26°40 4:5 216 
Pre - 3 : : 14°40 2°5 161 
Pre Potassium chloride (saturated) : 24°86 3°3 330 
Pre 5 55 : ; 13°41 18 180 
Pre Potassium bromide (saturated) : 40°28 34 392% 
Pre - a : ; 23°21 eS 2202 
Pre Potassium iodide (saturated) . : 58°24 3°5 460? 
Pre i SS : ‘ 36°74 2°2 i | 260? fe 
Ultra Potassium acetate . : : : 46°74 54 130 90 40 
Pre a ‘ : : A 26°05 30 Ros 128 can 
Ultra Magnesium chloride : ; ; 23°81 5:0 140 134 6 
Pre Bs x ; : : 12:98 2°7 Me 124 me 
Ultra Calcium chloride. : 5 : 28°84 5:2 178 171 16 
Pre PP 5 ; : : : 14°85 2°7 150 “et 
* Approximate values from graphical interpolation. 
The splitting up of amygdaline is certainly hydrolytic, and so probably is the 
splitting up of potassium myronate, although it is often represented by an equation 
which does not indicate hydrolysis. Certainly the presence of water is essential to 
both reactions. In each and every experiment the necessary water was present in large 
eXCess. 
The following question now arises: Which, if any, of these solutions should allow, 
and which of them should prevent or greatly retard, the interaction of the two gluco- 
sides with their corresponding enzymes, emulsin and myrosin ? 
