The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-03-15
TEMPERANCE NOTES.
aDULTERATIoN OF LIQUORS.



There is another matter to be conSid-
cred in the effort to convince men of
the fallacy of the theory that alcoholic
drinks are nutritious, or that they are
a benefit to the drinller. 1t is the
question of the purity of any liquor.
As a matter of fact there is hardly any
liquor, vinous malt or spirituous, which
is not adulterated. Take beer, for in
stance-of which Mr. Vizetclly, an En-
glish authority, remarks that 1.-THE pop
ular notion that the Intoxicating influ-
cnce of English beer is due exclusively
to its alcoholic strength is an erroneous
one, for there are many beers, con-
tanning only a very small guam
tity of alcohol, that are highly
SIMPLIFYING, most likely due to
the use of cocculus indicus. This
has been shown to be more poisonous
than prussic acid, and of it the Lancet
writes: "A viler agent could not well be
introduced into beer; its Supplying eff
fects are so well known that it is fire.
quently used to kill fish and BIRDS"
Among other authorizations of beer,
DIR. Parke mentions sodium of calcium
carbonate, lime, excess of soda, sodium
chloride, ferrous sulphate, sulphuric
acid, alum, burnt sugar, capsicum,
pepper, grains of paradise, aloes, colo
cynth, colchicin, santonin, picrotoxine,
strychnine, tobacco, picric acid, copper
and lead
When one comes to the wines, the
evidences of adulteration are as great.
The London Times recently published
an article on sherry, gentleman
having been found To have died from
and overdose of alcohol contained in
four gills of that wine. In this it was
stated that the grapes, before being
trodden, are busted over with large
quantity of plaster of paris, which re-
moves the tartaric and malic acids from
the juice, and leaves sulphuric acid in
their stead. Besides this, the juice is
treated with a variety of ingredients
to impart color, sweetness and flavor;
and it receives an addition of sufficient
brandy to raise the alcoholic strength
of the mixture to thirty-five per cent,
or in some cases, to as much as fifty
nine per cent of proof spirit. OF
champagne, Wetherbee states, in his
Toxicology: ga portion of the So
called champagne wines is composed
of the expressed juice of turnips, APP
pies and other vegeta bles, to which
sufficient sugar of lead is added to pro-
duce the necessary sweetness and as
tringency."
DR.. Baer, another authority, says:
mot only light wines, but mixtures in
which there never had been any grape
juice, are artifcially dyed and brought
into the trade as precious red wines.
To this end, vegetable dyes are used,
such as mallowb bloom, whortle berries,
elderberries, cochineal and logwood,
and in modern times the anniline dive,
fuchsine, especially dangerous be-
cause of the arsenic it contains. Very
serious symptoms have followed a few
days use of Observation-Disclosures, collie,
emaciation, etc" Spirits, too, vary
very much in quality. Inferior
brandy is often made from po-
tatoes. and contains potato fusil-
oil; pir.c--- sIwdust is said -
frequently added to whisky. I
point--nf fonssez sl-say low maNe,
simply proof spirits doctored with
various substances to give it color, fla
vor, bead, etc.
The same sort of evidence has been
given time and again regarding liquors
manufactured on this side of the At
lantic. 1t follows naturally that if a
liquor can be more cheaply produced
through adultera tions-which is al
ways true-or that an inferior and |
cheaper product can, by the use of |
be made to pass as SUI
perior grade, selling at a higher price,
that it will be done. This certainly |
is self-evident Not one drinker in |
ten thousand can tell pure from
adulterated liquors. In point of fact,
a pure liquor can not be obtained.
They differ only in the amount and
quality of the adulteration, that is all.
Even if one should grant that pure
liquors are sometimes beneficial-which |
we do not believe-what argument can
be found for adulterated liquors, loaded |
with poisons, any and all of which are
detrimental to the human system?
There certainly can be none. Hence
every friend of temperance should use
his utmost efforts to spread correct
knowledge of the universal adultcra-
ton to which all liquors are subjected
as part of the effort to pulverize the
rum power-Toledo Blade.