Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1881-06-01
s0IENTIfI0 VIEW
or THE TEMPERANCE QUESTION,

L PWNNE NDiNHp NNNl ilpN NlhNlUE
TO q close, DR., William James has given
the students at Harvard series ofWeek'
" practical talks upon physiOlogy and
hygiene, The series was brought to q
close by q lecture upon the nso OF atim'
ulanta, In which he gave cOmprchen'
aye statement OF the arguments for and
against tho practice OF moderate drink
Ing, and concluded that, aside from tho
moral aspect Of tho question, the balance
Of tho evidence IL In favor Of teet0taliRm,
The evidence II Of two sorts first, tho
observation by physiologists Of the i'm
mediate effects Of pure alcohol upon
men and animals second, the gonerall'
zatiOns from experience @, a., statistics,
The first kind " clear and unequiyocal,
but not conclusive, because the second.
AIRY aud more remote effects are some
times the reverse OF the immediate ra-
suits, and are not clearly measurable.
To test them tho second sort Of evidence
N better.
First, What h the result Of physiologi.
cal or scientific analysisY II should be
noted that the experiments from which
our conclusions are drawn were made
on absolutely healthy persons; and
therefore In the present state Of society
they are not capable Of direct applica-
ton 10 individual cases, IL alcohol u
foodY II was said few years ago by
eminent French scientists that no alco.
hol was destroyed IN the body, and this
statement was hcraldcd by great flour.
ish Of trumpots by toototalcrs, ~ pro.
viding that since alcohol was not food
II must bo u poison. Now, however,
such mon as Anstic and Parke have
shown conclusivcly that about one and
one'half ounces per day will bo wholly
destroyed in tho system, and that only
tho excess above this amount comes out
in tho perspiration, breath and urine.
Taken In addition to the usual quantity
Of food, alcohol increases the weight Of
tho body, and il less than the usual
quantity Of food IL consumed, alcohol
will make up tho deficiency and prevent
q loss Of weight, Alcohol would seem,
then, TO be food but experiments
show that IL rather takes the place of
food by reducing the demand for il, this
reduction resulting from diminution
in the activity OF the vital forces or oyid-
izing of the tissues. This effect, how
ever, is not desirable, as il is not consis.
tent with the state of perfect health,
though when ono is living on an INSULT
cicnt diet, the use of alcohol rs n Saving
food" may be the least hurtiul alterna-
tive.
The effect OF alcohol upon the heart is
to increase temporarily the pulsation,
but afterwards the increase is iscompensat-
cd so that, on the whole, there is but
little change. The use of the spirit. ..di-
lates the blood vessels Of the surface,
and, since it is from thesurface that SEN
sations of warmth are derived, alcohol
seems to warm the body; but ther-
mometer will show that the temperature
6,tbRjptari@i 4sia 4siat tia lfaly has 4,te)al"ao
it circulated over the surface. The
feeling of warmth is, therefore, illusory.
The effect upon the muscular strength,
though there is seeming increase of
activity and vigor, is likewise illusory.
Alcohol is the worst of stimulants for
the muscles; Liebigs extract of meat is
the best, and coffee comes next The
reason for craving alcohol is, that it is
an anesthetic, even in moderate quaint.
ties. It oblitemtes part OF the field OF
consciousness, and abolishes collateral
trains of thought. The association OF
ideas is less vigorous, and thus are
brushed from the mind all the cobwebs
of unpleasant memories. The single
idea, therefore, is strongly enforced, and
the speaker thinks he is giving utter
ance to something of unusual brightness
or sublimity. Experience shows, how
ever, that the work ofauthors and Others
that is done under the excitement OF
alcoholic stimulus does not stand the
test ola sober after-judgment.
Any task requiring more than half an
hour for its accomplishment cannot be
so we'll done under the influence of alco-
hol as without it. As rule, then, never
take alcohol before or during work but
if at all, when the labor is finished at
night, as an anesthetic to help sound
sleep. Never take it into an empty |
stomach. So far the effects OF alcohol
are chiefly deleterious but, on the other
hand, it has the good effect OF aiding
digestion. Yet, since its action here IS
simply that of flavor to satisfy the
nerves of taste these are seldom entirely
satisfied by the substantial food OF din
ner and hence the Importance of flavors
as an aid to digestion is very great, the
result desired may more safely be secur-
ed by the use of other flavors, as, for eX-
ample, fruits.
The second kind of evidence-the re
suits of experience-bearing on the sub
ject under discussion is very conflicting.
Whole nations that use alcohol for many
years seem more healthy than could be
the case if alcohol were poison. On
the other hand, evidence collected from
within one of these nations shows that
teetotalers are more healthy than mod
crate drinkers, as appears by experience
in hospitals, and by the statistics OF in
surance companies. These companies
divide all the insured into two classes,
teetotalers and non-teetotalers drunk
ards never being insured); and accord
ing to accurate statistics where, comput-
ing from the mortality tables, ITO
teetotalers ought to have died, only Sol
did die; but where 2OlO ordinary
people should have been visited by
death, 1897 actually were victimized.
One may we'll ask, therefore, in this
struggle of modern American life, with
its too rapid succession of burdens, Is it
well to start handicapped by the use OF
a beverage the effects of which are, on
the whole, likely to be injurious? The
young man of average physical health
will do well to consider whether he can
safely adopt such a course.
NEW FLOUR.