IV. On the excretion of nitrogen by the skin

During the years 1877-78, I conducted a series of experiments on the excretion of nitrogen by the skin. Some of the data then obtained were communicated at the Dublin Meeting of the British Association, but I have since extended the inquiry, and now beg to submit an account of the investigations. The results obtained by various experiments as to the existence of nitrogen in the sweat have been contradictory. Voit, Ranke, Parkes, and others, relying on indirect methods, have denied its existence, finding that the quantity excreted by the kidneys and intestinal tract was equal to, and in some cases even exceeded, that ingested, therefore leaving no room for any excretion by the skin.