Charles Mayer Wetherill

“ Leidy, who macerated with water the bodies of small animals, in stoppered bottles, to obtain their skeletons, found that the deposition of adipocire upon the bones was quite abundant.
The physiological question of the formation of fat, has been fully discussed within the past ten years, and it has been proven by diet and analysis, that herbivorous animals possess more fat than is taken in their food; but whether the fat be formed wholly from non-nitrogenized or from nitrogenized bodies, or partially from both, is yet undecided. ”

“ In the experiments of the bottles and of the sand, the decomposition was seen to take place gradually; the sarcous element of the flesh fibrine separated into discs, and these were by degrees resolved into their simpler compounds, which either remained as liquids or gases in solution in the bottles, or were carried off by the droppings in the sand experiment. The original fat of the body, according to circumstances, either partakes of this decomposition, or else, losing its glycerine and most of its oleic acid, becomes gradually converted into adipocire. ”

“ Animals in running water leave a fat after three years, which is more abundant in the intestines than in the muscles, and more fat is formed in stagnant, than in running water.
Chevreul, 1812, found the fat of church yards to contain margaric and oleic acids, combined with yellow colouring and odorous matters, also lime, potash, oxide of iron, lactic acid salts and azotized matter. He supposes the fatty acids are liberated from their glycerine by ammonia, which subsequently itself escapes, and that adipocire is thus formed from the original fat of the body. ”

“ Heated in a capsule with water, a transparent fat floats melted on the surface; heated alone in a platinum crucible, it melts and burns with a smoky flame, leaving a slight residue, which effervesces with hydrochloric acid, and contains beside sand and a little iron, principally lime. Under the microscope with moderate powers, it is white, fatty, and granular, disappearing with Canada balsam; with higher powers it is amorphous: melted on the glass slide covered with thin glass, is crystalline on cooling, in groups of plumose crystals, which give a beautiful play of colours with polarized light ”

“ Water will not wet it; with the addition of hydrochloric acid and heat, it is separated without effervescence, into a mineral solution, and into an oil which solidifies on cooling to a nearly white fat, a small portion of which melted on a glass slide solidifies to a confusedly crystalline mass; a small quantity treated in the same way with absolute alcohol, crystallizes in plumose and dendritic crystals, like margaric acid. ”

“ In comparison, dry human muscle from several analyses by himself, gives nine per cent. of fat. The muscular fibre of the mummy, after treatment with ether, presented the same appearance under the microscope, as fresh muscle placed in the same circumstances. Bibra states in the same article, that he is fully convinced of the change of muscle to fat, having obtained a human corpse in which all the parts of flesh were nearly wholly converted into fat. ”

“ The connexion of the organs of generation with the deposit of fat, and the increase of the latter after castration, is worthy of consideration; for the cutting off the supply of the highly albuminous semen, gives an impulse to the fat formation. The flesh and the fat of the body stand in an intimate relation to each other, and neither the non-nitrogenized nor the nitrogenized diet exclusively is conducive to health. ”

“ The greater portion of the lead salt was insoluble in ether and alcohol, its fat was separated and added to the first crop of crystals which fell from the alcoholic solution of the fat from saponification. To ascertain whether any glycerine was in combination with the fatty acids in the adipocire, the aqueous solution from which the crop was precipitated by tartaric acid during the purification of the fat, was heated, filtered from small fat globules, and after removing the tartar deposit, subjected to distillation. The acid residue of the retort was neutralized by carb. ”

“ The weight of material was seventy grammes; it was melted in the water bath, and filtered through paper in a hot funnel; the filtered solidified fat was of a light coffee colour, and weighed fifty-four grammes; in a capillary tube, is soft at 54°, fluid at 62°; on cooling becomes opaque at 50°. When pressed in paper, the latter is greased by oleic acid; it contains no ammonia, nor any nitrogen by the potassium test; the residue on the filter (together with the filter) was boiled with alcohol, filtered hot on a weighed filter, and washed with alcohol. ”

“ A few experiments were now made with the alcoholic liquid 6o. A concentrated alcoholic solution of acetate of magnesia added to this liquid, produced no precipitate, but micaceous crystalline scales fell on adding acetic acid, and upon adding more acetic acid, and heating, besides these crystals, an oil floated on the surface, which solidified on cooling, and which behaved like a fat, and gave the melting point of palmitic acid, viz.: 62° (solidifies gradually from 47° to 39°.) ”

“ Neither of these specimens gave any traces of fat globules with the microscope, but contained aggregations of white angular fatty matter, of nearly the same size, and about one fourth the diameter of fat globules. With ether the fat disappeared, and left shrunken membranous matter, which after the evaporation of the ether and treatment with acetic acid, became, for the most part, transparent. A comparative experiment with beef fat gave similar results, and I am inclined to think that the most of this matter proceeds from the fat cells, [9] and their accompanying cellular tissue. ”

“ I weighed the quantity of fat in one instance, and found that half a milligramme was much more than enough to obtain the melting point with the capillary tube.
(b) HUMAN ADIPOCIRE.
Towards the close of the year 1853, I visited a grave yard in Philadelphia, the remains of which were being removed, and from which, through the kindness of the superintendent, I obtained specimens of adipocire and valuable information. The surface of the burial ground was depressed about four or six feet below that of the neighbouring streets, and was of a very moist nature. ”

“ On comparing the melting points of these fats, and making allowance for want of a more perfect separation from impurities, there can be little doubt that they are neutral palmitates of magnesia, as was before ascertained. According to Heintz (Zoochemie, [Pg 18] p. 1072,) stearic acid is C36, H36, O4, and the magnesia salt contains by calculation, 6·9 per cent. of that base. The foregoing experiments upon the two specimens of human adipocire were intended preliminary to a more thorough research into their nature, by Heintz’s method ”

“ A piece of string is tied so loosely around the top of the (cylindrical) mercury [Pg 9] reservoir of the thermometer, that the different capillary tubes may be readily slipped in and out on raising the thermometer from the water; the heat from the lamp must be such that the temperature of the water rises gradually ”

“ The fluid in both bottles reacts strongly alkaline; when the mass of the heart is cut open, the muscular fibre appears of a dirty, yellowish-red colour, and when examined under the microscope, shows the fibre, but without any of the cross-markings in (b) . In (a) , which was more disintegrated, by the addition of water and a power of 700 diameters, the fibre could be seen broken in small portions, and giving evident traces of both longitudinal and cross-breaking up of the sarcous substance. The fibres of (a) , treated with hot and cold alcohol evinced no change ”

“ After having observed this in several instances, I abandoned taking the points of solidification, and modified the process for the fusing point, by keeping the water as near that point as possible, and repeatedly lifting the thermometer and attached capillary tube out of the water for a few seconds, that the fat might solidify, and noting the fusing point as that at which it at once becomes liquid ”

“ An ash determination of this part of the adipocire performed upon 1·471 grammes, yielded 0·0015, equal to 0·102 per cent. of a reddish ash, containing iron. No acroleine was observed during this experiment, and no other [Pg 23] than the characteristic adipocire smell, which proves the absence of glycerine, and that the fatty acids are uncombined. Ox fat (2·069) gave (0·001, or) a per centage of 0·048 white ash. ”