leads NEUMANN to the conclusion that, in this estimate of the nutritive value of beer, Liebig has committed an error of over 8,000 per cent. He notes, however, that, seven years later, LIEBIG, as the results of his experiments in metabolism, reached the con- clusion that alcohol in its value as a respiratory food, stands nearest to the fats. I can remember well enough that, when I was a boy, nitrogenous or plastic food was the only kind actually considered as "food," and we find a similar idea prevailing among athletes and their trainers to- day, who, in order to build up musclej insist on eating enormous proportions of meat. Nitrogenous food was food par excellence. When Liebig spoke of food, that is what he meant. It is further probable from the above quotation that Liebig realized how his statement could be miscon- strued, and hence it was omitted from later editions. It is, therefore, not Liebig' s opinion at all, or was such, at best, transiently even in the restricted sense which it properly bears. This is all that remains of the famous quotation from Liebig which, as the anti-drink "fans" claim, "has never been refuted." It should be added that the fats are held to be the greatest producers of energy, standing higher than the 45