Anonymous Student Volunteers Live On Diet of Gill Fish, Vegetables

Gill fish and white vegetables were the only consolation afforded five anonymous Harvard students for proving that vitamin A was not essential in the emergency rations of an American soldier.

For six months the guinea pig quintet aided George Wald, Faculty instructor in Biology and his Fatigue Laboratory staff at the Business School to carry on research for the Army, according to the latest issue of the Alumni Bulletin.

No Red Meat

Officials yesterday refused to reveal the names of the martyrs who gave up all colored vegetables--carrots, string beans, peas--except beets, and who voluntarily went without beef, chicken, and ham in the interests of science. So rigorous was the test that they would not have milk, butter, or eggs for half a year.

Before beginning their dietary ordeal, the participants ate an extra quantity of vitamin A in the form of halibut liver oil with their regular meal. During the test, the fare contained lass than a tenth of what is usually considered the minimum vitamin requirement, and only one-fiftieth the amount recommended by the Committee on Food and Nutrition of the National Research Council.

Not only did the experimenters do their daily rounds of New Lecture Hall, Sever, Widener, and the U. T., but they were recently found to be perfectly capable of performing moderately heavy physical exercise.

Took Doses of Minerals

The deficiency in vitamin A was partly compensated for by doses containing the other minerals essential to good health so that no detrimental effects on the "guinea pigs" could be detected.