In the 1700s, scurvy – caused by a deficiency of Vitamin C – was a deadly disease on voyages. Captain James Cook noticed that Dutch ships used to have less scurvy than English ships.
He wondered what they were doing that’s different and noticed they carried barrels of sauerkraut (fermented cabbage). So he decided to carry Sauerkraut which happens to contain a trace of vitamin C.
But he didn’t want to tell his men he was doing it in the hope that it would prevent scurvy. That would mean telling his men that he was taking them on a voyage so long that scurvy might kill them.
Instead, he had his officers eat at one place where the men could observe them. And, for a while, he served sauerkraut to the officers, but not to the men.
Then, finally, he said – “Well, the men can have it one day a week.”
In due course, the whole crew was eating sauerkraut.
Tact might be the most potent persuasion tool of them all.
H/T: Poor Charlie’s Almanack by Peter Kaufman
