Dry cereal grains and seeds have always been regarded as free from the vitamin C, and rations made up of such components have been used repeatedly to induce scurvy in guinea pigs. Davis has made certain observations which seem to indicate that a dry seed ration may actually confer some protection against scurvy. This ration consisted of Kaffir corn, split peas, barley, corn, oats and hay. On this diet, rabbits continued in good condition for 300 days, when th experiment was discontinued. Although twelve litters were born only one litter of five and three young out of five of another were reared. The same ration delayed the onset of scurvy in guinea pigs about 20 days. This appears to be the first report of protection by dry seeds. With five grams of raw dried beans, four guinea pigs received slight protection against scurvy.

The fact that the antiscorbutic factor in seeds is much increased when the seed germinates was observed by Furst69 and has since been confirmed by many observers. Chick and Delf70 report that the antiscorbutic value of these seeds (dried peas and lentils) after soaking in water for 24 hours and germinating for 48 hours at room temperature is five to six fold that of the dry seeds; while inferior to that of orange and lemon juice, cabbages, or swedes, it is equal to that of many other vegetables such as green beans or potatoes, and superior to that of carrot or beetroot. That the content of C in dried beans is notably increased on germination is indicated by Wiltshire's observation that germinated beans are more effective than lemon juice as antiscorbutic water71 although certain observers have reported these less satisfactory than other germinated seeds.72

63 Davis, private communication.

64Chick, Hume and Skelton, Lancet, 1918, ii., 735.

65 Chick and Rhodes, Lancet, 1918, ii., 774.

66 Lewis, J. Biol. Chem. 40, 91, 1919.

67 Hess and Unger, J. Biol. Chem. 435, 479, 1918.

68 Hess, N. Y. State Jour. Med. 30, 209,1920; J. Am. Med. Ass. 75, 508.

69 Font, Norsk, Mag. Lagev. 1912, 1; Zeit, Hyg. Infek. 72, 121, 1912.

Weill, Mouriquand, and Peronne73 question the efficacy of sprouted cereals as antiscorbutics, but their evidence is not very convincing in view of the well attested success which has accompanied the administration of sprouted seeds in cases of scurvy.

Dyke 74 states that beer made from germinated grain is antiscorbutic, a statement which accords with the belief of the early explorers who used malt or spruce beer or sweetwort (an infusion prepared by pouring boiling water over malt and letting it stand for three or four hours and then using at once) as antiscorbutics. Sweetwort is described in Cook's "Voyages" as one of the best of antiscorbutic sea medicines known, if used in time. The "high-dried kilned malt" used by modern brewers appears to have little, if any, antiscorbutic property.75 Dyke reports the results of an inquiry into the cause of an outbreak of scurvy among a Kaffir battalion in France. The diet of this community was arranged so as to reproduce as nearly as possible that of the native kraals, including the provision of a native beer brewed from millet, of which large quantities are regularly consumed in Africa. An outbreak of scurvy occurred although this is unknown among the Kaffirs under ordinary conditions. Inquiry brought out the fact that the native beer was always brewed from germinated grain, but that in France the germination had been omitted.

The common vegetables show very considerable variation in their content of C. Davis found great variation even among different lots of fresh string beans. A litter of three guinea pigs were successfully reared on a ration containing 30 grams per day; 15 grams per day of canned string beans delayed, but did not prevent the onset of scurvy. Campbell and Chick obtained no protection with guinea pigs on a diet containing 5 g. per day of raw string beans.76

70 Chick and Delf, Bioch. J. 13, 199, 1919. 71Wiltshire, Lancet, 1918, 11, 811.

72Comvie, Edin. Med. J. 1920, 207; Stevenson, J. Roy. Army Med. Corps, 35, 218, 1920.

73Weill, Mouriquand and Peronnet, C. r. Soc. de. Biol. 81, June 8, 1918. 74Dyke, Lancet, 1918, ii, 513. 75Smith, Lancet, 1917, ii, 813.

The leafy vegetables have considerable protective power, fresh cabbage being pre-eminent in this respect. Davis found that 7 g. per day represented the minimum ration of cabbage necessary to keep guinea pigs in satisfactory condition. When reduced to 5 g. per day they lost weight. Chick and Rhodes77 reported that as little as 2 g. per day prevented the onset of guinea pig scurvy.

Canned spinach was also found to give very different results when different lots were compared. Of four lots examined two were satisfactory and two were unsatisfactory as a source of C.78

Of the root vegetables, the swede (yellow turnip) appears to be equal if not superior to all other sources of C Chick and Rhodes 79 found that only 2.5 c. c. per day of the raw swede juice was required to afford complete protection against scurvy to guinea pigs; 20 c. c. of carrot juice was required to give the same degree of protection, and beetroot was less effective than carrot.