The Indianapolis journal., 1892-05-01
WHY DO MEN GET DRUNK?
A Puzzling Question Which Has Not Yet
Been Satisfactorily Answered.
A Correspondent Discusses the Causes and Ef-
fects, and Concludes that the Habit Can
Be Changed by Medical Treatment
To the Editor of the Indianapolis Journal

To the Editor OF the Indianapolis Journal
That drunkenness is disease is o
doctrine that has recently becn very gen.
orally advocated and very generally rldI-
culed. 1t is believed by scientific men and
drunksrds. and ridiculed by that class OF
persons who know nothing about the mat
ter either i'll practice or in theory. One of
the strongest evidences that drinking is
not simply q matter Of choice with those
who are addicted to the habit is that all
such have undergone almost exactly
similar experience. Any person who
has been brought in contact with
large number of men who have come to-
gether at an institute to be treated for
what is called the alcohol habit will be
struck with the strong resemblance that
exists between one given case and all the
others The degrees through which all
have passed are almost identically the
came. and the experiences which all have
undergone so much resemble one another
that IL would require O most discrimina at
ing mind 10 distinguish between any two
OF them. There IS the same uniformity In
the development and progress of the
habit. IT you choose SO TO call 1t. that
Is 1ound In a number OF we'll
"
typhoid fever. This we regard as a strong
evidence that alcoholism Is q disease and
not simply matter of habit or practice on
the part of the person afflicted with 1t,
which he can and should control at his dis
cretlOn.
But stronger evidence that the drink
habit Is something more than simply q
habit is the fact that men who are ad-
dicted TO 1t do not quit IL, though they de-
sire To do so beyond everything on earth,
and maEa dQpn md aincpre rpaolufiOne N
that effect. If drinking Is q thing that each
individual can control, in his own partlc-
ular case, by the mere exercise of his Will.
why does not each individual so control itf
IsITA MATTER OF CHolCE'
Is any one silly enough to suppose that
any body is drunkard from ChOicel On
the contrary. there was never one who did
not feel the pangs of humiliation and re-
morse to degree that always leads to con-
temptation of suicide, and frequently to it's
actual commission. Ii is the lnvariabie
experience OF every one who has been ear
RED far In the TIDE OF Intemperauce that he
has struggled on through long and dreary
years. oil the time cherlshing the hope that
he will finally beaDle to conquer tho habit.
being loath TO believe that 1t is beyond his
shattered by ois-repeated failure and dis
appointment. until o sort of morbid belief
takes possession of Lis mind that for him
to get drink was foreOrdained from the
foundation OF the world. and that there
can DO no escape from that destiny. j be-
heve that no man ever rec0N cred from q
debauch that he did not firmly anu highly
resolve. and at the time believe. that it
should be his last. But. after all his re-
solves and good intentions he hardly gets
fairly sober until he is drunk again. A
repetition of just such an experience as
that is TO be found IN the case of every
drinking man. such au eX perience, extend
ing throneh IA period of years, is calculated
to discourage maD. aud To grind the COLI
victIOn into his mind that drunkenness il
something more than - matter of like or
dislike. 10 bo cOntOlled at his own DIS
crrtlOD.
The fact that aome men do use lisuor
within the bounds of moderation and not
to their serious detriment ia no argument
to cOntrOyert this theory. Such men have
the disease. but not In 40 virulent n form
as others. Tho fact is that If the liquor
habit can he controlled by each individual
addicted to 1t, then all men who drink ut
all arc fools. The man who drinks and
gets drunk Is q fool for getting drunk. ana
the man who drinks ald does not get drunk
Is a fool for not getting drunk-ior what
does any man want to drink for II is Is not
to get drunki
CAN IT BIZ CUREDf
Can drunkenness be cured by the appli-
cation of medical remedi-ss Recent ex-
perIence is proving that it can and is being
cured. 1t is very cheap to say that n man
can uitdrinklng if he wants to. But sup.
pose he does not want TO. Suppose he oc-
casiOnally gets into n frame of mind and
condition of body In which be does not
want to keep sober, but does want Ia get
drunk3 lt may DO that In just such a
condition of mind and BODY the disease
consists. No man can be held rcspOns ble
for his wishes and desires. likes and dislikes.
Such man looks upon drunkenness. a
great part of his time. with inexpressIble
adherence. but there is likely, at any
hOnr. to come a spell over him in which ho
looks npon state of intoxicatiOn as the
most glorious of all earthly conditions, a
spell In which no imagines that there il
nothing truly great and noble except To get
| drunk. Now, when such O state of mind
| takes possession of bin. then he is inst as
| certain TO get drunk men ordinarily are
to keep sober. In the liability to fall into
| that state of mind. perhaps. the disease con.
| has been asked a million times and ne yeI
| answered once. No man ever could answer
it. A man does not drink because it make
| him brilliant. for he knows it makes him q
| fool He does not drink out of ambition to
appear handsome and attractive. for he
| knows it makes him ridiculous and repuls.
| i've: not to make him genial and good, fol
| he knows il makes him vicious and Inso-
| lent. nor to bring happiness. for he knows
| it brings misery. In fine. he does not drink
| to achieve any purpose which he desires to
achieve. for he knows that il defeats all bis
most cherished designs. whatever they may
| be.
believe that drinking is more matter
of mental disposition than of physical ap-
petite. but that the disposition of mind Is
| brought about by physical conditions. Ii
is IN accepted fact that the state of one,
mind 10 often produced by the condition O,
his body. Hence physical remedy which
| operates only through the organs of the
| body may produce or prevent o desirable
or undesirable state of mind. / mean tc
| say that the disposition to get drunk NAV
he prevented by the nee of physical rene
dies. Tho idea might be suggested, in this
| connection. that 1t is within the range OF
| possi bilities that a medicine might be dis
| covered to cure men of lying. who are in
| tho habit of telling lies. ! believe that
| men get drunk because it is IN their dis.
| positions to do SO. and that their DISPOSE
| tions can be changed by medical rene
dies. JACOB HERR.
PLAINFIELD, Ind. April 90.