45 
In still another communication in the year 1863, on “The conduct 
of blood toward oxygen” ( 384 ), he points out that ozone and hydrogen 
peroxide are formed simultaneously in a large number of slow oxida- 
tions, such as the oxidation of phosphorus in a moist atmosphere. 
In a large number of cases, however, only hydrogen peroxide is met 
with as the by-product of the oxidation, as, for example, in the oxida- 
tion of metallic substances, pyrogallic acid, etc.; and in still another 
large group of cases neither ozone nor hydrogen peroxide are pro- 
duced, for the reason, probably, that the latter oxidations are accom- 
plished by common oxygen without activation in any way. ITe then 
goes on to say that the view has long been prevalent that in all oxida- 
tions resulting in the formation of ozone or hydrogen peroxide the 
conversion of common inactive oxygen, (O), into © or 0 takes place. 
The former, ©, then unites with water to form hydrogen peroxide, 
HO -f ©, whereas the latter, 0, is either consumed at once in the 
oxidation or appears as ozone. Indeed, according to Schoenbein, 0 
is ozone. He therefore arrived at the conclusion that the neutral 
oxygen which is taken into the body during respiration must obviously 
suffer such a change of state before it can accomplish the oxidations 
ordinarily taking place in the animal organism, and since both ozone 
and hydrogen peroxide result from the oxidation of many substances, 
he expected to find these substances in the blood of animals. As a 
matter of fact, however, although he employed the most delicate 
reagents in testing for these substances in the blood, he was unable 
to find a trace of either ozone or hydrogen peroxide therein. In this 
connection he points out, however, that Hiss had shown that ozone 
readily oxidizes the albumin and fibrin of blood and also the blood 
corpuscles, and that long ago Thenard had shown that fibrin readity 
decomposes hydrogen peroxide into water and common oxygen, and 
he himself had shown that blood corpuscles obtained from defibri- 
nated blood also rapidly decompose hydrogen peroxide, and that a 
solution of defibrinated blood of such dilution as to no longer exhibit 
the characteristic color of blood rapidly blues tincture of guaiacurn 
containing hydrogen peroxide. He concludes, therefore, that while the 
common oxygen consumed in respiration is resolved into © and 0, the 
latter, 0, is at once consumed in oxidations, and that the former, ©, 
unites with water to form hydrogen peroxide (H0 + ©) ; which, how- 
ever, is rapidly decomposed by the red blood corpuscles into water and 
common oxygen. This again enters into the ordinary cycle of changes 
met with in the absorption and utilization of the respired oxygen, viz, 
into the formation of © and 0, so that ultimately all of the oxygen 
would be gotten into a form available for oxidations, viz, 0. 
It should likewise be borne in mind that the blood corpuscles not 
only have the power of decomposing hydrogen peroxide into water 
and common oxygen, but also of ozonizing the oxygen, ©, which it 
h 
