An Exioerimentcd Inquiry into Scurvy. 



259 



Blood in the Scurvy of Monkeys. — In order to get monkeys with as 

 M'ell-developed symptoms of scurvy as possible, the animals were kept 

 until not only were they passing bloody mucus by the bowels, but the 

 gums were spongy and easily bled. Unfortunately, the blood of only 

 two monkeys could be examined, as the others died too speedily. The 

 monkeys Nos. 8 and 10 in the second group, however, both showed very 

 well marked symptoms of scurvy, as found in monkeys — diarrhoea^ 

 wasting, the motions containing blood and mucus, and the gums spongy 

 and easily bleeding. 



Table IV. — Comparing Analysis of Blood of a Normal Monkey with 

 that of two suffering from Scurvy. 





Normal. 



Scurvy. 





2-000 



0-950 



1-050 





4,730,000 



4,220,000 



4,500,000 





8125 



40,000 





75 



48 



45 





1046 



1035 



1034 





83 -37 



85-18 



84 -99 



SoUds 



16-63 



14 -82 



15-01 





18-27 



12-37 



15-69 





0-52 





0-76 





3 minutes 



2 minutes 



1 minute 





2-72 



2-31 







0-75 



0-79 





In the above Table IV the results of the analyses of the blood in 

 the case of these two monkeys are compared with that of a normal 

 monkey, so that we can more readily see the changes produced. 



The blood to be examined was collected from the carotid artery 

 while the animal was kept under the influence of ether, and when 

 sufficient blood had been collected for the various analyses, the animal 

 was killed by an overdose of anaesthetic before it returned to con- 

 sciousness. 



The Namher of Red Blood Corpuscles. — These were estimated by the 

 Thoma-Zeiss' Counter, and in each of these cases the average of two 

 blood counts is given, the result being the number of red blood cor- 

 puscles contained in a cubic millimetre of blood. 



It is seen that while in the normal monkeys the number of red blood 

 corpuscles is 4,730,000 per cubic millimetre, in the two monkeys 

 suifering from scurvy it is respectively 4,220,000 and 4,500,000. 



Other observers have drawn attention to the diminution in the 

 number of red corpuscles in cases of scurvy as quoted by Philip Wales 

 in Ashiu'st's ' International Encyclopaedia of Surgery.' 



