40 RESEARCHES ON THE NITROGENOUS NON-ALBUMINOUS 
teresting fact on the intimate connection of these bases and 
nucleine, and thus throwing a new light on the chemistry of 
plants and animals. 
As among the plants or parts of plants in which crystallizable 
nitrogenous substances have been hitherto searched for in a 
detailed way, gramineae are almost absent, it appeared to be 
interesting, to study from this point of view a member of 
that large family, which calls forth our admiration every spring, 
on account of the enormous ,^ize of its shoots as well as the 
rapidity of their growth. 'Bamboo shoots, a favourite article 
of food in our country, are indeed very rich in nitrogenous 
non-albuminous substances; an analysis made of the edible 
part of the largest variety in our laboratory showed that nearly 
yo% of total nitrogen exists in the form of non-albuminous 
substances. Its per-centage composition was found to be as 
follows : 
Water.gi.37. 
In ioo parts of dry substance: 
Crude protein.25.12. 
Crude fat. 2.4g. 
Crude fibre.11.60. 
Nitrogen-free extract.41-52. 
Ash, free from C 0 2 . 9.22. 
Total nitrogen . 4.04. 
Nitrogen in amides, etc.2.82. 
The method I adopted in the investigation undertaken was 
exactly the same as that recommended by E. Schulze and may 
be briefly stated as follows : 50 kilograms of fresh bamboo 
shoots, freed from bark and cut into thin slices, were thoroughly 
extracted with boiling water, and the extract was treated with 
basic lead acetate. The filtrate from the lead compounds 
was treated with an excess of mercuric nitrate, when a large 
quantity of a faint coloured precipitate was formed, which was 
much enhanced by the addition of a little caustic soda. After 
