The Sun.
London, England, 1847-05-21 00:00:00

FOREIGN SUPPLIES.

The following arrivals of cattle, provisions, and
grain, took place at the port of London on Monday, the
enumeration of which will be of exceeding interest to
the general public, as well as to those more immediately
concerned in the importation and traffic of such produc-
tions at the present time:—The Attwood, frcm Rotter-
dam, brought 71 oxen and cows, 8 calves, and 224,
sheep; the B elloaa, from Gravelines, 131 packages of
eggs; the Victorine, from Caen, 150 eases of eggs; the
Poule, from Cherbourg, 183 cases of eggs; the Konig-
via Von Schoneden, from Wolgast, 1,200 bags of
wheat; the Mentor, from Dantzic, several hundreds of
hams; the Ocean, from Rotterdam, 162 casks of butter,
13 baskets of cucumbers, some of fish, 53 of yeast, 71
of cheese, and other articles; the Zealous, from Charles-
ton, 2,300 quarters of paddy, or rice in the husk; the
Lins, from Wolgast, 1,200 quarters of wheat; the
Magnet, from Harlingen, 1,940 casks of butter, 150
casks of cheeses, 13 horses, 137 cows, 27 calves, 110
sheep, 9 packages of poultry, 3 of eggs, and 334 bags
of potatoes; the Rapid, from Rotterdam, 71 cows, 6
calves, 271 sheep, 8,000 cheeses, 296 bales of seed,
several packages of butter, fish, and other productions;
the City of London, from Rotterdam, 274 casks of
butter, 2,798 of cheese, 55 oxen and cows, several
packages of hams, fish, poultry, &c.; the Oxenbirg,
from Aarhuns, 450 quarters of oats, and 230 quarters
of barley; the Neptune, from Gravelines, 243 cases of
eggs; the Winchester, from Launceston, Van Diemen's
Land, 890 bags of wheat ; the Niemepemnen, from
Dantzic, 1,600 quarters of wheat; the Laurine Ma-
thilde, from Illiddlefauht, 480 quarters of barley; the
Jane Smith, from Stettin, 750 quarters of barley; the
Ceres, also from Stettin, 800 quarters of wheat; the
Princess Royal, from Hamburgh, 304 casks of butter,
58 oxen, 20 casks of flour, 33 bales of bacon, 488 bags
of wheat, several of tongues, perk, seed, and other
articles; the John Troughton, from Alexandria, 2,000
quarters of beans; the Rattler, from Hobart Town, 286
bags of wheat, the Twa Brodre, from Wadewalla
(Sweden), 500 quarters of oats and 160 of seed; the
Maidstone, from Calcutta, 2,752 packages of rice; the
' Agnette Kirstine, from Aarhuns (Denmark), 320 quar-
ters of wheat and 170 of oats; the lioffnung, from
Stettin, 1,255 quarters of NN heat ; and the Charlotte,
from Dantzic, 1,302 quarters of peas. The whole of
these arrivals took place at the port of London alone, as
before stated, in one day, and the several articles in-
cluded in the list are, it need scarcely be stated, either
entirely free, or subject to very trifling rates of duty on
importation into this country. The arrivals of butter
from Holland have lately been very extensive, much
more so than was formerly the case, and every possible
privilege is conceded in order that these articles of food
may be admitted into the markets without delay.

MORTALITY in the METROPOLIS.
The number of deaths registered in the London dis-
tricts last week were 278, or males, 512 ; females, 466.
Births, 1,327, or males, 668 ; females, 659. Meteoro-
logical observations taken at the Royal Observatory,
Greenwich•—barometer, mean height, 29.005 ; ther-
mometer, highest, 68.0 ; lowest, 45.1 ; mean, 56.1 ;
general direction of the wind, S.S.W., with a maximum
pressure of 3.5 lbs. on the square foot ; mean amount of
cloud, 6.8; sums of rain, 0.54 inches.

. ,
In the quarterly report which appeared in February
last, apprehension was expressed that scurvy may break
out among the people of this country. The necessity of
precautionary measures was also adverted to in the fol-
lowing terms.—

"ly, the physician to the Milbank Penitentiary,
showed some time ago that scurvy was very prevalent in
prisons from the dietaries of which potatoes were ex-
cluded, and did not exist where potatoes were used.
The potato contains a small quantity of a vegetable acid,
in combination with potash (bitartrate of potash, or
cream of tartar). It is certain that scurvy, which Wag
formerly common, has almost disappeared since the
potato entered largely into the food of the population.
If, now that the potato has grown scarce, this disease,
characterised among other symptoms by swollen bleeding
gums, again become prevalent, its simple prophylactics
should be had recourse to."

Although no deaths have yet been directly ascribed
to scurvy in London, the disease, it is now ascertained,ed
has appeared in many parts of the country. Several
cases, too, have shown themselves at the London h°6"
pitals. Under these circumstances the followifollowingprac-
tical suggestions of Dr. Baly deserve the attention of the
public. The poorer classes particularly should be
properly informed on the subject. Where green
vegetables and lime juice cannot be procured, a weak
acidulated drink of cream of tartar and sugar may be
tried ; for it is the presence of the former salt which
probably renders the potato antiscorbutic.
" It cannot be doubted," says Dr. Baly, " that the
prevalence of scurvy at the present time amongst the
poor in Scotland, some parts of England, and even in
London, is owing to the scarcity of vegetables, and
especially of that kind of vegetable which alone the
poor can usually obtain in quantity adequate for the
preservation of health—namely, potatoes. The want of
potatoes, as I have shown elsewhere, was the cause of
the appearance of scurvy in many prisons and other
public institutions at former periods. The potato being
now so scarce, other articles of diet have been sub-
stituted for it. The article substituted has been for the
most part some cheap kind of grain, as Indian corn, rice,
grainbarley,
peas, or
has But the farinaceous food
b:oans.
antiscorbutic property. It has
madeoats,
from
been necessary, therefore, to supply this
flavouring the farinaceous food with
limei s defect
. by
juice, the
great prophylactic against scurvy in the navy ; or to
(
combine with the food some fresh vegetable, such as
turnips Swedes),
carrots, cabbages, onions, cress. and
mustard. Both these measures, when tried, have- been
successful.
" A small quantity of lime juice would be sufficient to
give antiscorbutic properties to the rice, meal, or Indian
corn, toed used by the poor, or an acidulous drink
might be made with it. In ,either way it would be an
efficacious, and, I think, an economical preventive of the
disease. Its use might be introduced with great advan-
tage into workhouses and amongst the out-door poor.
" The fresh vegetables I have named could seldom be
procured by the poor themselves in sufficient quantity,
they might use plants which
gburotwsowmieldti,
msueeshPaesrthhaPsecOmmon water-cress and scurvy-
' grass. These are powerful antiscorbutics, and most
edible green vegetables, especially those which have an
acid taste, possess the same properties.
.. The important point, however, seems to be, that the
5
i poor and the guardians of ;the poor should be instructs
that farinaceous foods, made of grain or meal of an
kind, will not alone serve as substitutes for potatoe
that either some green vegetable ar succulent root must
e be eaten with them; or the deficieut itlatilc9aPtic prow
PeltY lit Tplied with lime juice."