Bee. i, 1925 A Chemical Study of the Flesh of Emaciated Cattle 1003 
The bone marrow of sample No. 2, which was gelatinous and 
translucent in character, had the following composition: Moisture 
93.13, fat 0.16, and ash 1.5 per cent, as compared with 92 per cent 
fat and 3.4 per cent moisture in normal bone marrow. 
Feder also studied the distribution of notrogenous compounds in 
the water extract from a number of samples of flesh. He found that 
the water extract from those samples having the lower “ Feder ” 
numbers (ratio nonfatty organic matter to moisture) contained a 
higher proportion of nitrogenous compounds that were not precipi¬ 
tated by trichloracetic acid than did samples of flesh having higher 
“Feder” numbers. Feder states that in certain cases the flesh of 
poorly nourished or diseased animals may show higher ratio numbers 
than 4.0. 
TERMS USED IN INVESTIGATION 
Before presenting the results of this investigation it seems necessary 
to define the terms “very thin” and “extremely emaciated” as they 
will be employed in this paper. “Very thin” cattle may be defined 
as cattle with a much shrunken musculature and with practically no 
fat deposits, but with no apparent abnormal condition of flesh, con¬ 
nective tissue, bone marrow, or organs. “Extremely emaciated” 
cattle, on the other hand, may be defined as cattle in which emacia¬ 
tion has proceeded to such a degree that the flesh, connective tissue, 
and bone marrow have become distinctly abnormal in appearance. 
In this paper these terms will be applied to those animals only that 
are free from evidence of recognized disease, 
MATERIAL USED IN INVESTIGATION 
The material used in this investigation consisted of (1) hind quar¬ 
ters from extremely emaciated cattle, (2) hind quarters from very 
thin cattle. The quarters were obtained from meat-packing estab¬ 
lishments in Chicago, Ill., and Kansas City, Kans. As soon as it 
was thoroughly chilled the beef was wrapped in cheesecloth and bur¬ 
lap and forwarded in refrigerator cars to the Biochemic Division, 
Bureau of Animal Industry, Washington, D. C. 
On receipt at the laboratory the quarters were placed in cold stor¬ 
age at a temperature approximating 36° F. Each quarter was 
weighed, and a record was made of its physical characteristics. As 
a rule, the femur was sawed in two, so that the marrow could be 
examined. The muscle tissue was carefully separated from bone and 
connective tissue, ground twice, and approximately 2 pounds was 
transferred to a glass jar for analysis. The chemical determinations 
were begun either the same day that the meat was prepared for analy¬ 
sis or the following morning. 
DESCRIPTION OF HIND QUARTERS FROM EXTREMELY 
EMACIATED CATTLE 
In all, 20 hind quarters from a like number of extremely emaciated 
cattle were examined. It is not worth while to describe each quar¬ 
ter in detail, since all had the same general characteristics, which were 
as follows: 
(1) There was practically complete absence of visible fat, although a slight 
deposit was found between the muscle bundles in one or two quarters. The 
