The Osceola times., 1883-02-10
POISONED BEAUTY.
Secrets of the Toiie. Revealed by Drug
Brooklyn Eagle.


Brooklyn Eagle.
| went into a fashionable uptown
druggists, near the junction of Fifth av-
enua and Broadway, and while waiting
for prescription to be compounded fell
into conversation with one OF the clerks.
lie was man # about Al years, and inn
pressed me as being accurate and truth
fll in his statements. Various toilet
articles for wonen's use, got up in the
most costly and elegant manner, were on
showcase, ] asked him whether a
certain face powder which | had seen
largely advertised was injurious in its
effects
Very" said he, slowly; sit is very
largely composed Of bisnuth, and the ei-
feet of bismuth was horribly exemplitied
by the death of that actress in the South
the other day from using too much of it.
Still. women use il in lavish quantities
without a thought of consequences. How
ever, there is not half the danger to our
women from these external poisons that
there is from poisons that 90 beneath
| the surface"
"Well," / said, with the knowing air
that usually accompanies entire ignor-
ance, "Pve heard a good deal of talk
about that sort OF thing, but never have
believed any OF it,"
Nevertheless" said the clerk, quietly,
at is true. Our women follow the halit
Of Partisan women very closely. In Paris
the art of beautifying tho face and figure
is carried to higher point than any
where else on earth. When the French
began to use beliadonna all the women Of
the world followed. Then the Parisians
were struck with the mcrphia mania
that was awful. 1t got so common that
women would always inject morphia hy-
podermically before entering n ballroom
or salon. The immediate effect would
be to make their faces flush, their eyes
/ sparkle like diamonds, and as the poison
stimulated the mind, their conversational
powers were much more brilliant. But
the after effect was so dreadful that even
the giddiest women were obliged to give
it up or die at once"
."But do you mean to say that that ha-
bit was followed by New York wo nenr
"Assuredlv. We sold r1orphia in
enormous quantities, always, OF course.
on a physicians prescription. II Is no
safeguard to prohibit the sale of the poi
son unless authorized by doctor, for the
doctors are the very men most to be fear
ed. The French women Of fashion used
! 20 carry little bottle covered with an
| ingenious network of silver and gold
with an injecting needle in the end. It
was often worn as personal ornament,
and few people suspected that it con-
tanned morphia."
ADO they still use The drugF"
"Not morphia. That has gone out of
fashion and another and far more dan
cerous poison has come in. Arsenic is
now the pet drug. Its consumption dur
ing the past few years has increased
twenty fold. A woman is debilitated
and run down from one cause or another
and her physician gives arsenic as tonic
The effect is marvellous, and you trust a
woman TO appreciated it, Her complexion
which was before sallow and yellow,
becomes clear beautiful hitc, and her
frame which was spare, if not skinny,
suddenly becomes plump and voluptuous
1t is not natural color to the practical
medical, eye, though it appears 50 to
evcryois else and the plumpness Of per-
son is unaccompanied by physical
strength. This improvement in her
personal appearance is the absorbing
subec of thought with the woman, and
she does not allow its causc to escape
her, She easily persuades herself that
arsenic will not hurt her if she tai es
it in moderate quantities, and her physi-
clan is coddled into prescribing ii. We
will not sell the poison unless ordered
by fresh prescription every time, but
many druggists viii keep on compound
ing the old dose as long as the victim
pays. There are many dishonest drug
cists, but the fault is primarily that OF
the family physician"
Rather startling state Of affairs.