Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-09-16
ABOUT ABNORMAL MAN.
Something of the Effects of Alcohol in the
System.
It's Treatment ns q Physiological
Objectionable Does Not Aid Work
and Retards Digestion.

The actual effect of alcohol upon the
human system is a subject which has ex-
cited considerable interest of late wears
amohg physicians. and has attracted some
attention from mankind at large. The
average man is probably aware or has
peen aware at some period Of his llfe of
certain effects" of pleasant forms Of alco-
mol upon the system, and may contend with
himself that alcohol in moderate Quantities
is not only good for his health. but neces-
sary for il. Whether this be true or not
he may learn by reading the opinion of
scientists appended herewith.
From a publication entitled Abnormal
Man. issued by the bureau of education
and compiled by Arthur Macdonald, the
specialist, are gathered the opinions ex-
pressed below, being from the pens Of a
number of the most celebrated writers upon
sociology in the world. IL is not designed
TO make this chapter a temperance lecture
or to dwell upon the sociological effects Of
alcoholism, but simply to tell what science
has found In its Investigations of the ply
s,ological result Of introducing alcohol into
the human system.
Physiological Question.
The alcoholic question is above all ply
Biological one. We know that alcohol is
consumed in our body, that 1t is a s,urce
of living force; but il does not follow that
1t is food until this power is shown to aid
the working of normal functions. We 40
not know whether the muscular fibers and
nerve cells can utilize alcohol a source
of power. i'cohol lessons the heat OF The
body by working an enlargement OF the
blood vessels in the skin, in consequence of
which more warm blood flows through the
cold surface and more heat is given out
The enlargement of the blood vessels comes
In this way: In the walls Of the blood YES
sells there are small ring muscles, which
are In constant contraction. The cause Of
this contraction comes from certain nerve
hbers. which run to the ring muscles. and
they all have a common center In the
brain. Alcohol paralyzes this center, the
nerve irritation ceases, the ring muscles re-
lax, the blood vesselssare widened and the
skin becomes richer in blood (recognized
by the color. The reddening OF the cheeks
after drinking wine. which is the effect Of
alcohol is a pathological phenomenon. TIE
ordinary man says alcohol warns HIM In
cold weather.
A self-Deception.
This is self-deception; he feels simply
the warm blood streaming out to the skin
In greater quantities. AS a matter OF fact
he loses heat. The deception comes per-
haps In this way: The brain centers, which
mediate the feeling of cold. are stupefied by
paralysis. In general II can be proven that
all effects Of alcohol which are generally
designated excitation are in reality only
paralytic phenomena The psychical ef-
which is first weakened, Is the clear judg-
ment or critical faculty. In consequence
the emotional life prevails. freed from the
chains of criticism; the man becomes open
hearted and careless. Brt above all the
paralytic effect of alcohol shows itself II
this, that every feeling Of discomfort and
pain is benumbed, and especially the hit
terest pains, the psychical ones. as sorrow
and anxiety, wherefore the merry feeling
in a drinking company. A man never be-
comes clever through drink. This wide
spread prejudice Is also a deception; II is
likewise a symptom Of brain paralysis.
where, as self-criticism sinks, self-suIh-
cheney rises and self-control is lost
1t Does Not Aid Work. ~ Ill
He who becomes accustomed to take al
cohol regularly is in fact better capable OF
working than IL alcohol was suddenly
taken away from him. But this is the case
also with other poisons. When morphine
is taken away frctn the morphine eater he
cannot work, tleep nor eat. lie Is
strengthened" through morphine. But he
who is not accustomed to narcotics is not
made more capable Of work through mar
cotics. But of still more weight are the
thousands of experiments that occur In
the case of soldiers; that In war, In peace.
In ell climates. all hardships OF the most
wearisome marches are best endured when
the soldier abstains wholly from all aico-
holic drinks. These facts were verified in
the English armies IN Cafraria, West
Africa. Canada and India. And additional
verification is the fact that thousands Of
sailors are not allowed to touch drop Of
alcohol on board, and this in tropical, tenn
perate and especially In polar regions Most
whale fishers are total abstainers. That
which is true of bodily exertion is rs true
of mental Alcohol strengthens no one; It
simply benumbs the feeling Of fatigue
Does Not Aid Digestion.
The error of poor people in this regard is
especially unfortunate, as they spend much
for al tn ST q hon shau i'm
stead Of buying rich and salutary1 food.
The advocate Of beer claims that Il Is nu-
tritious. True beer contains a consider
able quantity of hydrocarbons dextrin and
sugar. But there is a surplus of this in
food already: and there is no reason, also,
why it should be taken in a more costly
form. 1t is claimed that beer and wine aid
digestion. but many experiments have been
made on animals and men, and especially
on men with the aid Of the stomach pump.
which show that moderate doses of beer
and wine lengthen the time of digestion
and disturb ii. Direct observations on per-
sons with stomach fistula likewise indicate
the same effects.
Alcohol as medicine is a mild anaesthetic;
II should only be used for acute sickness,
but never for chronic troubles. for the same
reason that morphine and choral hydrate
should not be employed.
A Perverted Taste. Il -.iN
Many drink because of the good taste OF
iiQuOE lOl lOT tIeClS. taste Is
made perverse in this way: the appetite
tends almost wholly toward meat; sugar.
ripe fruits and sweet food In general are
distasteful to the drinker. Physiology has
established that sugar is the source of mus
cular force. When the sweet is no more
agreeable to us signifies an abnormal con-
dition. A drinker finds himself in this con-
dition: and he is a drinker who does not
feel himself at ease unless he takes beer
wine, or alcohol in any form.
Alcohol In passing into the digestive tube
produces a warm pricking sensation, which
propagates itself from the mouth to the
pharynx and stomach. Concentrated or
large quantities of alcohol acts as an irri-
tant in the stomach; this action is much
more energetic II the stomach Is empty: in
this case diluted alcohol is Injurious be-
sells, exciting viscus. when stimulation
has no use, but IL there is food in the
stomach, a moderate dose is still more III
luted and mingles with the ingesta and Sc
cretions; here II is not an irritant. bur a
stimulant of the digestive functions. II Is
absorbed especially In the stomach in the
duodenum and in the beginning OF the in
testine. If the quantity taken is large
enough. 1t penetrates the blood either
vessels.
Total Abstinence.
Alcohol causes an acceleration Of the
heart beats followed by a corresponding
decrease, in such a manner that when the
doses have been increased a little and not
repeated, the average pulse within the
twenty-four hours rests without change.