Behaviour of Oxy '-haemoglobin, &c, in the Magnetic Field. 503 



perature have a decidedly destructive effect upon the vitality and 

 virulence of the organism. 



I am very greatly indebted to Professor Dewar, F.R.S., not only 

 for a constant supply of liquid air, but also for many valuable sug- 

 gestions given me during the course of the experiment, and my 

 cordial thanks are due to Dr. Roux and the officials of the Pasteur 

 Institute for the facilities given me at that Institution for carrying out 

 the necessary inoculations. 



" On the Behaviour of Oxy-haemoglobin, Carbonic-oxide-haemo- 

 globin, Methaemoglobin, and certain of their Derivatives, in 

 the Magnetic Field, with a Preliminary Note on the Elec- 

 trolysis of the Haemoglobin Compounds." By Arthur 

 Gamgee, M.D., F.R.S., Emeritus Professor of Physiology in 

 the Owens College, Victoria University. Received and Read, 

 June 20, 1901. 



1. The Observations of Faraday and Plucher on the Diamagnetic Properties 



of the Blood. 



In the course of his investigations on magnetism and diamagnetism, 

 read before the Royal Society in the year 1845, Faraday* found that, 

 notwithstanding the iron which its colouring matter contains, the 

 blood is a diamagnetic liquid. " I was much impressed," he remarked, 

 " by the fact that blood was not magnetic, nor any of the specimens 

 tried of red muscular fibre of beef or mutton. This was the more 

 striking, because, as will be seen hereafter, iron is always and in almost 

 all states magnetic. But in respect to this point it may be observed 

 that the ordinary magnetic property of matter and this new property 

 are in their efforts opposed to each other ; and that when this pro- 

 perty is strong it may overcome a very slight degree of ordinary 

 magnetic force, just as also a certain amount of magnetic property 

 may oppose and effectually hide the presence of this force." f Faraday 

 further found the blood to behave like all the constituent tissues of 

 animal bodies which he investigated, and was led to state that " if a 

 man could be suspended with sufficient delicacy, after the manner of 

 Dufay, and placed in the magnetic field, he would point equatorially ; 



* " On New Magnetic Actions and on the Magnetic Condition of all Matter," 

 ' Phil. Trans.,' 1846, part 1. 



f Faraday's ' Experimental Kesearches in Electricity,' vol. 3 (1845), p. 36, 

 para. 22S5. 



