The Van Buren press., 1869-08-24
Secret Use Of Chlsroform by Women.

How to enjoy the pleasures Of inebri-
ETY., and yet to escape the shame of dis
covsry, is a problem which women--ss
pccially those Of the respectable, not to
fashionable, class have long endeayor
ed 10 solve. The disrcputablc wsmag
only yields to the fascinations Of gin and
boldly avows her drunkenness; but the
reputable woman repudiatcs the coarse
ness of undisguised liquor and drsadz
the disclosure of her intenperate propen-
sites. Various aids to drunkenness have
from time to time been adopted, and have
enjoyed temporary popularity. Mo-
to give more than a passing mention to
those familiar beverages of abnormally
thirsty chambermaids---eau dc Cologne
and bay rum--there are numerous prep
arations Of sarsaparilla which, ten or fiji
teen years ago, were the peculiar delight
Of intemperats but strictly moral We
men. Bitters succeeded to the place
made vacant by the abandonment OF sar-
sadarilla, which had gained an. unsavory
reputation by the careless frequency with
which it was exposed to the gaze of mas
cnliue intruders into the boudoier In
its turn, however, bittcrs became too no.
toriously a panderer to female thirst to
be longer safe resource, and it became
necessary to seek some new and unsus-
pected stimulaIt. At one time there was
a prospect that hashcesh would come
into general use, but the introduction iIr-
to f1e marxsy pf so-caileu nasnees1r
sired symptoms OF intoxication, brough;
the Oriental drug ints complete disgrace.
In the absence Of anything better, opium,
the use of which is only less difficult Of
concealment than that Of alcohol, would
doubtless have gained new devotees, had
it not been discovered that chloroform
was precisely the safest and most con-
venisnt agent with which female respect
ability could lntoxicate itself. The ex-
tent to which the habit Of the secret use
OF chloroform prevails to day among all
classes Of women, from the inmates Of
the several.haunts Of Green street to the
bellies Of Fifth avenue and the pupils OF
fashionable boarding schools, is known
to few except the apothecariss who
supply the deadly drug. For deadly i.
is and though its poison is as swift as
the cobra's, it is at others slow in its ven
geanee, reaching through ysars of mise
~, but always sure aud inevitable. We
hear with terrible frequency of suldea
deaths from chloroform, "taken to allay
a headache;' but we do not hear Of the
wreck of tho brain and the ruin Of the
nervous system which its habitual use
surely brings about. The swiftness with
which it produces its dreamy intoxica.
ton, and the few apparent traces which
| it leaves bahind, make it a favorite with
women who know nothing of its ungov-
| ernable force, Of its cumulative effects
and its terribly dangerous nature. Its
use is far more to be deprecated than
that OF alcohol or opium, the effect OF
which can easily be foretold. Chloro-
form, on the contrary, is ~ subtle and
sudden in its wayward vengeance as the
most treacherous and dangerous of the
women who use it. The dose that was
seemingly inocuous yesterday, may. II
repeated bring swift and resistless death
to day; and, though the penalty should
be delayed, it is certain TO be inflicted
sooner or later. When year or two
ago, writer charged American women
with drunkenness, the charge was easily
repelled for the delicate organization Of
the refined lady instinctiyely and noto
riously shuns the rude grasp Of alcohol
The charge that chlorSform is largely
used by women is, however, lamentably
true 1t is general used in ignorance OF
its nature aud ultimate effects, but the
sad disgraceful fact that it 10 habitually
employed 10 an alarming extent, as an
aid tO female drunkenness, cannot bs
gansayed ~. y. Worla