was not until nearly fifty years later that Sir Gilbert Blane, fleet surgeon on Admiral Rodney's flagship, H.M.S. Formidable, who had followed Lind's treatment for scurvy with the result that not one of the nine hundred men aboard the Formidable was lost from scurvy in six months, succeeded in having the Admiralty make lemon juice a requirement for all vessels of the Royal Navy.
With the introduction of a daily ration of lemon juice, to begin after a ship had been at sea for a fortnight, scurvy disappeared from the British Navy as if by magic. At that time there was little distinction made between lemons and limes. In fact, lime juice was often substituted for lemon juice in the ration. This is the origin of the term "limey," used for a British sailor to this day.
In view of what we now know about vitamin C, it is interesting that the quantity of orange or lemon juice recommended by Dr. Blane — one ounce daily — contains almost the exact amount of ascorbic acid which modern scientific studies have shown is required to maintain the vitamin C balance of the body.
If James Lind and Sir Gilbert Blane lead off the roster of famous naval surgeons, the next names in the list are those of Charles Darwin, Thomas Huxley, Karl von Linné, better known as Linnaeus, the great Swedish botanist, and the English botanist, Sir John Richardson.
Among the famous doctors of the American Navy must be mentioned Dr. Edward Cutbush, of Philadelphia. While still a medical student at Pennsylvania Hospital, he served in the fight against the yellow-fever epidemic of 1793 and received the official thanks of the city of Philadelphia. Upon graduation, he joined a force of militia to suppress the Whisky Rebellion. Later he was appointed "surgeon in the Navy of the United States." He served on the Constellation in the blockade of the Barbary ports. This squadron was based at Syracuse, Sicily, where Dr. Cutbush established what was probably the first United States naval hospital, certainly the first one overseas.
Cutbush was probably the first surgeon in our Navy to vaccinate
