Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1867-07-20
T'HE LIQUORS or COMMERCE.

T'nE LiouoRs or coanrncr.
',AelANTs IN THE SICK ROOM
The vile art OF sdul,crnins aleohclic ,iaa;s.
was practiced in Greece and Rom.
two centuries age. and then, as now. the y.ai
cal Faculty denounced il, and lamcn,ea ~. a,
hculiy Of procuring pure and whole sons .,imu.
lants for the sick.
hipPocrates called attention 10 the tricks OF
The Athenian winners four centuries before The
Christian era. Galen. somewhat later. stcrnly
'soasea tue wine merchants of Rome for tam
per'ng with the juice Of the grape. There was
no distilled liquors in those day. and manv 81
the subtle poisens at present used by LIQUOR
mixers we're unknown. bu, considering their
knowledge and opportunities the adul,er.,ors If
the 'clsssic agcs" showed considerable aaori,
ness in their nefssious calling. Lead. lime. svr.
sum. and sea-waser were pu, into new wins h,
the Roman dealers. and it was boiled and ,ef, /,
cool In metal vessels by way OF inproyiny II.
taste and giving II Transparency. To this day
somc Of the Mediterranean wines are subIcc,,a,o
q similar process. All the wines OF Europe are
moro or less aduterated before thev leave .'hrt
hands, and as 10 the stall commonly rctAiIed ia
this country under The names of Fort, sherry
Madeira, Sc. &C.. aloe juice. decoe,ion OF log
wood, powder OF catcheu. alum. plaster OF paris.
lead, lithorge, carbonate OF soda. oil of almonds
cider and bad rum, may be mentioned as among
their peasants ingredients.
But IL is in the concoc,ion Of .'spirituous
liquors that the adultsrntovs Of this generation
particular excel The tricks Of the Greek and
Ro an via,ners were mere childs play TO theirs
s.ry chnine. sulphuric acid. sugar Of lead, jaiap.
opiates. and variety OF pungen. alkalies are
among the de!icacies that enter into the ccmpo
stion Of ordinary bar, room liquors" and some
OF them consist almost wholly OF peraieious
chemicals witty a small atmixturc Of unrectihcd
spirit. No wonder, under such circumstances.
that tavern brandy, rum gin aud whisky. carry
eeath and madness in their train. No wonder.
also, that phys,ctaas Aaps lost eonadtocs IA ne
h9uors Of commerce and are arrdd 10 use ttep,.
Htimulants. however. are as necessary in med
cal practice as febrif,ges. or cAtnar,ics or ano.
dynes. or alternatives. or any other OF the reccg
naed specifies for disease. The great question
is, can pure stimulant be rad Wesay it eau
We assert that HosrKrrnRs Ssosacn BtrrRss.
the alcoholic basis Of which ia the essence 81
sound Monongah-lt Rye, Is 1s pure a stiaaiant
asst il possible for Amman stiu 10 manufacture.
II is, however. something more and better than
this. to wit. n Judiciousiy medieated stimnlant.
in which the qualifying ingi cden,s are the fines,
stomachic. apericnt, Alternative, and anti-hilious
herbs. roots and gums. These vegetable con
stitucnts modify aud control the effect Of the
spitituous elements. snd render tho Bitters the
SAFEST mldest and most effective ipvigornnt at
present in3use
II may be remarked. perhaps, that this il M
easy thing 20 say-but how "a IL 10 be proved'
TO this We have only toreply that corroboraiive
testimony from high scientific sources, and from
citizens of good standing in every profession
and calling, extending over period OF more than
twenty five years. 10 1t the service Of whom u
may concern. Volumes OF this testimony have
been published, and there remains ut least IN
equal amount as yet imprinted.
For the melancholy consequences which ensue
from the sale Of anwholesosic compounds bear
ing the names Of the various spirituous liquors,
the powers that be are in some degree RESPONSE.
BILE. Deriving as il does. IA large revenue from
the Importation and manufacture Of alcoholic
beverages, il 10 manitestiy the duty of the Gen
eral Government 20 protect the people "a fur "a
possible against the introduction OF poisons into
their daily drink. Still more imperative Is the
obiga.ion 20 shield the sick from the peril Of be
ing killed or injured by pernioious excitnnts. nd
ministered ss medicines. Inspection ard taxa
ton ought. in this matter. go hand in hand. and
in all caseeof adulteration, the ndnltcrated arii-
Gle instead Of being taxed should be- destroyed.
Every tinctnre and extract containing. or purpor
ting 10 contain alcohol, should be examined by
competent scientific men, and no, permitted TO 20
into the market until it's purity has been author
n .g,t,
community should be paramount 10 the financial
interests of the Government-the public health
being of infinitely more Importance than the
public revenue. But no such PROTECTIVE super
vision is exercised either by the central power
nj W Gshington or by the State Governments.
Tho Internal Revenue assessors. and collectors
simply demand their tar, knowing nothing about
the wholesomeness or unwholesomepess of the
article upon which II il levied the Custom
House Collectors insist on payment Of the duties
required by law on impcsted liquors. but how
much or how little foreign poison there may be
in each cask or punchcon IL Is not their business
to ascertain. Congress- seems to have entirely
overlooked its function Of public protection in
iegisiating on the liquor question. State Legis-
latures have been equally rem,ss. Many of them
have tried prohibition, and failed No one Of
them, 80 far ~ we are aware, has endeavorcd to
mitigate the evils OF which they have oil com
planned BY institutng rigid svstem Of inspec,icn
We should be glad to see such a system
adopted AZ an experiment. II would at least
prevent u,psincipled dealers from palming of.
upon the working classes. to an unlimited ex-
tent. the fiery fluids which ill our jaiIa. poor
houses. hospitals. iunatic esylums. and innumer
able graves. with miserable victims.
Were such . regulation in force We should
have no need to explain the nature and value OF
our preparation though the public prees The
report Of the inspecting officers would be our
sufficient vouchers stronger advertisement
than any We could frame. Gladly would ~
welcome the official agents Of the Government
State or Federai--to our factory, and challenges
their closest scrutiny, their sharpees tests. An
inspection law OF the kind indicated would. II
competently administered, be one Of the most
| ,s.s.l .c.cAsuarss ovse ,,laeed nm ouf AZ n Int