Mar. 6,1917 
Fermentation of Corn Silage 
369 
curve. However, between the second and third days during the same 
period in which there appears a marked increase in bacterial activity in the 
sugar and acid curves, there is also a second rise in the NH 2 -N curve, 
which is probable evidence of some proteoclastic action by bacteria. 
A similar series of 
determinations (series 
2) made two months 
later shows a some¬ 
what different set of 
curves. F ield-gro wn 
corn at the proper 
stage of maturity was 
chopped in the silage 
cutter, inoculated with 
material carrying the 
usual flora of the farm 
silage cutter, and en¬ 
siled as before. In 
this series total and 
volatile acid, alcohol, sugars, amino nitrogen, and ammonia nitrogen 
were determined. The analytical data are shown in Table IV. 
Fig. 3.—Curve showing the increase in amino nitrogen (and the rate of 
hydrolysis of protein) in series 1. 
Table IV .—Series 2: Formation of total and volatile acid and alcohol, and the dis¬ 
appearance of sugars, amino nitrogen , and ammonia nitrogen in silage 
[Data on 100 c. c. of silage juice.] 
Age of silage. 
Total 
acidity 
( Njio). 
Volatile 
acidity 
( Nho ). 
Alcohol. 
NHrN. 
NH3-N. 
Total 
sugars. 
Disappear¬ 
ance of 
sugars. 
Days. 
C. c. 
C. c. 
Gm. 
Gm. 
Gm. 
Gm. 
Gm. 
0 . 
17-3 
1.4 
O. OOO 
0. 021 
0. 006 
3 - 139 
0. OOO 
I. 
97.O 
42. I 
. 188 
■053 
. 008 
I. 622 
I- 5^7 
2. 
160. 3 
56.9 
. 210 
. 060 
. OIO 
1. 008 
2. I3I 
3 . 
205.4 
65.2 
. 197 
. 066 
.OIO 
.648 
2. 49I 
4 . 
235-2 
68. 4 
. 262 
•095 
. 026 
•235 
2. 904 
5 . 
250. 6 
68.6 
• 3°7 
. 098 
. Ol8 
.158 
2. 981 
7 . 
254.4 
70. 6 
.238 
.097 
. 019 
. 019 
3. 120 
9 . 
263. 0 
71. 0 
.403 
. 104 
. 021 
. 019 
12. 
266. 9 
78.9 
. 256 
. 084 
. OI9 
. 120 
15 . 
274.6 
75-8 
•347 
. 112 
• 025 
. l6l 
2 T. 
291. 8 
84. 0 
•354 
. 128 
. O27 
296. 6 
79-5 
•337 
• 149 
. 028 
. v . 
The form of the acid curves of this series (fig. 5), when compared to 
the usual form of the acid curves, suggests the possibility of so large 
an inoculation with acid-forming bacteria that the maximum in numbers 
was reached during the first 24 hours. The curve showing the disap¬ 
pearance of sugars (fig. 6) has the same form. The curve showing 
the formation of alcohol (fig. 4) is of the enzymic form, like the corre¬ 
sponding curve in series 1. Irregularities in these two alcohol curves 
