St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-01-17
IT WROUGHT HER RUIN.
A Fair Young Life Blasted by the Dread
Demon Opium.
How the Morbid and BaIefuI Appetite
Was Ac quired.
ecial Correspondence of the Globe.

Special Correspondence of the Globe.
CHICAGO. Jan. 15.-There appeared in the
local columns of the city papers, few day!
since, an item referring to the rescue of 8
young and handsome woman from an opium
joint which watchful policeman had seeI
her enter. In court the girl related pitt
tul story Of how she had been taught Il
enjoy the dangerous fumes, and had im
bibed passion for the opiate that led he
to apply to a degraded Chinaman for I'll,
drug. The court. taking into consideration
the girls youth and refined ap
pearance, after securing n pledge frOu
her, permitted the girl to depart
May she keep the pledge better than one
other misguided girl who is now an inmate
OF the insane asylum. In October of the
year 1879, l made the acquaintance of 9
bright newspaper man, then an attache Of q
philadelphia journal. In company with
his sister, a lovely girl of II years, who
had been attending a musical college in BOs
ton. they were on their way to visit theil
parents in Missouri 1t was at the home oil
mutual friend in this city that we FIRST
met. That friend was physician in good
practice but given TO an abuse of the course
that follows the departure of ladies from
the dinner table. Miss Smith-So we will
call her-was a frequent sufferer from
nervous headaches. and had frequently
found relief only in hypOdermic.
INJECTIONS OF MORPHINE.
The doctor found it necessary, at the
time of which l write. to administer the
usual remedy to Miss Smith, but increased
the required quantity to an extent that pro-
duced such effects that it was some time
before the patient recovered from the use Of
the drug. Her sufferings were so intense
that again and again. day after day, she
submitted to the hypodermic relief, until
month had passed and she was still an in
mate of the doctors family, her brother
having. in the meantime, abandoned his
visit 10 his parents and returned TO his
newspaper office. A year later. the brother
Mr.. Smlth-had removed to this city,
had comfortable home wherein his par
ents and sister were installed, and one day
i was invited to dine with the family. The
change In Miss Smith was greater than
one's widest fancy would suggest. The
once bright, plump features were pale
aud sallow, the bright eyes common
10 lasSes of Is had given place TO dull.
half-closed orbs that appeared heavy with
sleep. An hour later-after dinner-a
transformation as startling as any ever
seen on the stage had taken place. The
hStcSS udluer OF the ElIi Hdu departed.
she was all vivaclty-llfe itself; her eyes
sparkled, cheeks flushed, her movements
were quick and nervous. and her conversa-
ton bright and entertaining. The music
we enjoyed that evening was something
always worth remembering. Shortly be-
fore 10 o'clock Mr.. Smith and myself. night
hawks, that we were, started for our re-
spective posts of duty in morning news
paper offices. Comment on
HIS SISTERS BRILLIANCY
ELECTED but sigh. and my boy, you don't
know her." Then thought it strange that
a brother should appear so listless, so apa-
thetic when listening 10 praise Of an only
sister-but later found a clue to the puz-
gle. Six months passed; Smith and met
frequently. but he had always an expression
of grief on his face. At the press club we
said Ned is growing melancholy;
there must be woman in the
case" Then we little knew how
true our surmises were. There was a
woman at the bottom of all Ned's toubles,
and that woman was his only sister. She
had becrme a confirmed morphine eater.
Long after the circumstances shall now
relate. became acquainted with the poor
girls actual condition. Morphine hypo-
dernically administered caused her ruin;
relief from present pain resulted in future