ON ALCOHOLIC FERMENTS. 
229 
grammes of yeast, and 200 grammes of white of egg dis- 
solved in water by means of 0.001 of hydrochloric acid. 
The temperature being maintained at 68° F., the fermenta- 
tion was promptly established, and continued to proceed 
with regularity for four days ; being then slower, I collected 
the ferment, and I found its weight to be only 50 gr. .5. 
There is beyond that a multiplication of 1 to 7 observed in 
the brewer's vat. The globules of ferment cannot, in any 
way, assimilate the albuminous matter, any more than the 
sugar. On the other hand, I have repeated the above ex- 
periment by substituting for the 200 grs. of albumen 100 
grs. of fresh gluten, also dissolved in water acidulated with 
0.001 of hydrochloric acid. I employed also 50 grs. of yeast 
The fermentation proceeded regularly for four days. The 
ferment collected at this time did not weigh more than 49 
gr. .2. It is evident that the globules of the ferment do not 
assimilate more of the solution of sugar than the solutions 
of albumen and gluten. Does it not follow from these ex- 
periments that if we find in the brewer's vat 7 of ferment, 
only one having been put in ; this must be owing only to 
this 1 part of ferment having met with prote'ic substances, 
which, placed in a fermenting medium, are proper for giv- 
ing rise spontaneously to globules of ferment ; the same as 
in the must of grape, without having added ferment, we 
find a considerable quantity of it? 
Ibid, from Comptes Rendus. 
