DURING some recent experiments on the influence of various swelling agents on protein fibres it was noticed that, when treating hairs with concentrated solutions of sodium hydroxide in the cold, the cortex could be dissolved completely and the medulla, as far as microscopical appearance could tell, left intact. Human, horse and goat hairs could all be stripped of their cortex by this means, and it was therefore decided to make a sulphur analysis of the separated cortex and medulla. Although the absence of sulphur from the medulla is now generally accepted [King, 1933] and has been demonstrated by qualitative microchemical tests [Bekker and King, 1931] or inferred as a result of comparing data for medullated and non-medullated wool [Barritt and King, 1931], actual direct analysis of the two morphological parts of the hair shaft has not previously been recorded.Goat hair was chosen as the material for the work since a large supply was available. The hair had previously been washed with a large quantity of clean tap-water and dried and degreased with acetone. A qualitative test on white hairs made on short cut pieces of the hair showed that, by soaking overnight in a solution of sodium cyanide and then adding sodium nitroprusside, a pink colour
IN a previous paper [Jordan-Lloyd and Pleass, 1927] the absorption of water by gelatin in a system containing hydrogen, hydroxyl, sodium and chlorine ions was considered. The present paper deals with a system which is similar, except that nitrate ions are present in place of the chlorine ions. The experimental material and method were precisely the same as described in the previous paper. The ash content of the gelatin used in the present experiments varied from 0X02-0X01 %.Three variables influencing water absorption were examined: pH, tempera-
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