The Pedestrian's Record

52 the pedestrian's record. The foods which contain fat-producing compounds in large quantities are thoseusually eaten and drank by us daily, viz., potatoes, bread, pastry, butter, sugar, and alcoholic fluids, such as beer, wine, and spirits. Now all these are made up with starch, sugar, oil, or alcohol, or both, and are consequently fat generators ; for instance, starch and sugar enter into the composition of potatoes, bread, and pastry ; and in butter, glycerine and oil are found ; and in wine, beer, and spirits, sugar and alcohol are always present. Starch and sugar consist of the same chemical elements, and in nearly the same equivalent numbers ; thus, the formula of starch is— Carbon .... 12 Hydrogen Oxy'gen T Carbon .... 12 Hydrogen Oxygen .... II from which it appears that the addition of one atom of hydrogen and oxygen to starch converts it into sugar. Now, during fermentation (the process of distillation),starch becomesdextrine; dextrine, sugar; and sugar, alcohol ; and, if this process be carried further, alcohol degenerates into acetic acid (vinegar). Similarly, as fermentation can be conducted without, so it can within the living organism, under the guid­ ance of certain vital functions; but this internal