Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-03-30

Abalnshe-Drinlging In Pnrts-RxtraerdI-
narT Prnvnlencs 81 the Ouatona It's Her
ribIe Rnect en- are System.
A Paris correspondent Of the New York
Express Observes; s' rrn-f r-f off0 OFT
You in America have no idea Of the ex-'
tent to which the French carry, the abuse Of
absinthe, 3 preen-tinted ldhor, IN It's pure.
state, extracted from norwood. The pfacl
ticei of drinking this terrible poison-for Il
Is nothing less-may be compared TO the
vice Of epium-smoking among the Chinese
or hasheesh@eating among the Arabs. II
certainly is worse than the besettinR weak
ness Of 90 many Americans and English
men, rum-drinkinR, inasmuch as il is more
general, its effects quicker, and its results
more debasing. .lt '
From various statistical documents, ema.
mating from official sources. il is unhappily
only too evident that absinthe plays an inn
pottant part in the mortuary lists Of France,
and, above all, Algeria, where its ravages
are positively frightful, It's use being almost
universal in the army regiments stationed in
Africa, possessing no other mode of killing
the weary hours Than in pursuing this insid
ious and destructive practice.
The votaries of Rbsinthe are divided into
two ~categories. A certain nuulber Of per-
sons, without having been long addicted to
the vice, soon become accustomed to i'm.
blpihk GAI AhAkO HuAuNltltH vi Ele DuUOTs
The effects, in these cases, manifest them
selves suddenly, in the form of violent de-
hriun. This is the acute stage. Others are
professional drinkers, and, having com.
menced on small quantities, gradually in
creased, the deleterious influence is longer
in declaring itself, though not less certain
in the end. This is the chronic stage.
In the acute stage the intoxication pro-
duced by absinthe is of anoisy and agrees.
i've character. The period o~fdrunkenness is
much more prolonged than that occasioned
by alcoholic beverages. When the excite
ment disappears and the collapse at length
takes place, there remains q feeling ofheavi-
ness and fatigue, which sleep fails to relieve.
By degrees, as the draught is repeated, the
digestive organs are iniuriously affected,
and appetite ~diminishes, or gives place alto
gether to an Unsuitable thirst. To this sue
ceeds On undefinable u~neasiness, singing in
the ears and frequent vertigo.
Mental Authorizations are also common,
which, in the daytime, take the form Of
imaginary persecution, and at night that of
horrible dreams. In those who have &C.
quired a fixed habit of drinking absinthe, the
muscular powers are thrown off their bal
ance, and present a state of indecision and
lsxity, easily recognizable from involuntary
fhTillary contractions, nervous trembling in
the arms, hands and inferior eXtremities. A
sagacious and practical observer, DIR. Motel,
Of the Paris Faculty, who has devoted much
attention to the study of the subject, also
s~ignaliZes a dizziness of the eyes, tremulous
movements of the lips, the muscles of the
face, and even the tongue, feebleness, dys-
pepsis, emaciation, y~ellowness of the skin,
badness, and every sign Of premature old
age.
This is but a summary sketch of the havoc
produced in the human system by the use of
absintbe. Much more might be said, aud,
indeed, whole volumes have been written on
the theme by experienced members of the
medical profession. There exists ne Fren-
mar who is not perfectly aware that the vice
is terribly destructive, yet the proportion of
those who indulge in it, to a greater or less
extent, amounts to fully fifty per cent of the
male population, and includes all classes of
society. Strangely enough, the very persons
who best know the character of the poison
and the unerring certainty of its effects, are
those who are the largest consumers.
The working orders, as a general rule,
drink vastly more beer aud cheap wine than
absinthe. 1t is the professional classes
about all military and literary men-who
swell the ranks of its victims. To cite only
a single name, | will mention the fact, well
known throughout France, that the en-
iuent poet and dramattst, Alfred de Mus.
set, died, almost four years ago, at less than
forty years of age, from the abuse of alb
sinthe. And Alfred de Musset was one of q
body of men chosen from the flower of
French intellect-a compeer Of Hugo, Theirs,
Lsmartine, Guizot-a member of the Acad-
envy of France!
To-day, enter, at what hour you please,
any Of the thousand cafes of Paris, and you
are sure 10 find one or more individuals sip
ping their glass of absinthe. With some,
the excuse is to open the appetite p with
others, ito aid digestion" I nave been
told that the Government, viewing with
alarm the constantly-increasing consump-
contemplates again augWenting the price OF
that article. 1t would he we'll at the same
time to prohibit tho distillation aud sale OF
the emereld- tinted poison called absinthe.