1168 Stoward.—Amyloclastic Secretory Capacities of the 
dependent on the fact that instead of a complete organism we are dealing 
with an isolated fragment of tissue which possibly, during the later phases 
of cultivation on an artificial substratum, lapses into a semi-pathological 
condition. 
In order to gain some idea of the probable order of the secretory 
capacity of the embryo under ordinary germination conditions, the inquiry 
was restricted to the examination of the amyloclastic powers of the scutellum, 
for it will be obvious that if the examination were extended so as to 
comprise the plumule, radicle, and rootlets the data obtained would 
necessarily show but one feature, namely, that of progressive increase due 
to the formation of new tissue and the laying down in each new cell of 
a small amount of amylase for the internal economies of the newly-formed 
units. It is, therefore, the capacity of the scutellum, the cells of which 
do not undergo multiplication, 1 which is of interest in the comparison of 
the relative secretory powers of the embryo on its natural nutrient medium 
and on artificial substrata. 
The material for investigation was derived from seeds, which after the 
customary steeping in absolute alcohol and water were germinated at 
laboratory temperatures (i5°-i8° C.) for periods varying from 3 to 8 days. 
The embryos after removal from the germinated seeds were dissected 
into scutella and radicles and plumules, dried for 4-10 hours at 30°, and 
subsequently the scutella investigated for amylase as already described, 
the finely ground desiccated material being directly added and well mixed 
with the starch solution. 
TABLE XXXIII. 
Amylase Content of Scutella of Barley Seedlings at Various 
Stages of Germination. 
Duration of 
germination . 
A mylase per 20 objects 2 per 
hour in mg. Cu. 
Weight of 10 radicles 
and plumules, 
mg. 
3 days 
263 
— 
223 
— 
4 days 
357 
46 
5 da y s 
158 
S 2 
i 53 
47 
7 days 
158 
78 
248 
70 
8 days 
59 
1 19 
59 
124 
69 
94 
69 
74 
8 days 
84 
94 
— 
1 Examination of extensive series of serial microtome sections of the scutella of embryos 
from seeds after 0-21 days’ germination failed to reveal any evidence of cell division in any 
of its phases. 
2 10 objects were used in each experimental and control digestion. 
