244 Vines —Proteolytic Enzymes in Plants . 
The following experiment was made with small pieces of the fruit 
that had been bruised in a mortar: io grms. of the bruised fruit were 
placed in each of four bottles, of about 40 cc. capacity, with 0-3 grm. 
of Witte-peptone : 
No. 1 was filled up with distilled water. 
No. 2 „ ,, chloroform-water (0-5 %). 
No. 3, the material was boiled with the water before adding the 
Witte-peptone. 
No. 4 was filled up with distilled water, and 1 cc. of 4 % HCN 
added. 
After 5 hours in the incubator, the results were : 
No. 1 gave a marked tryptophane-reaction. 
No. 2 ,, distinct „ „ 
No. 3 „ faint 
No. 4 „ distinct „ „ 
18 hours later, the reaction was marked in Nos. 2 and 4, and still 
faint in No. 3. 
Ecb allium Elalerium. 
The expressed juice of the fruits of the Squirting Cucumber is 
mucilaginous and acid, giving a faint tryptophane-reaction. 20 cc. 
of the juice were placed in each of two bottles, to one of which nothing 
was added, to the second 0-2 grm. of Witte-peptone. 
After 6 hours in the incubator, the contents of the first bottle gave 
a faint, those of the second a marked, tryptophane-reaction. 
The following experiments were made with fruits belonging 
to various orders other than the Cucurbitaceae. 
Musa sapientum. 
The watery extract of the ripe Banana is a mucilaginous, acid 
liquid, giving distinct tryptophane-reaction ; on account of its viscidity, 
it could not be satisfactorily used : small pieces of the fruit were used 
instead. 
10 grms. were placed in each of two bottles with 40 cc. of distilled 
water: to No. 1 nothing further was added: to No. 2, HCN to 
o-i %. 
After 5^ hours’ digestion, No. 1 gave a marked, and No. 2 a 
distinct, tryptophane-reaction : 1 8 hours later, the reaction was stronger 
in both. Auto-digestion had taken place. 
