The record-union., 1896-03-21
DRUGS AND DRINK.
Stimulants That Cause Far More Harm
Than Alcohol,

Than Alcohol.
With our civilization has come a great
and continual decrease in drunken
ness. The national drink bill" con
corning which so much is said, is less,
man for man, than it was a century or
hait century ago, or at least repre-
sents less. consumption We hear
more about drunkenness, but that is
because we have ceased to regard it as
a matter of course, q regular part of
daily life. Therefore, 1t may be sur
missed that our blue-ribbon and other
armies in fighting the drink fiend," are
striking at which is after all a dying
monster, though dangerous even in the
death-grips
Meanwhile another and subtler de-
mon arises. The vices of civilization
are with us, and those VINO would scorn
to ''drink," as they call it-differentiat-
ing the consumption of alcohol from
that of all other liquids-indulge in
drugs of various kinds. Opium, either
in the form of laudanum- drinking or
in the subtler form of the hypodermic
injection of morphia, is, though not
common, less rare than is guessed to
be. Insomnia or pain which to our
sensitive nerves seems intolerable is the
excuse for beginning the habit, and the
end is worse than drunkenness. The
cocaine habit is a recognized fact in
America, where our Teuronic race sub
jected TO an intenser climate and an in
tenser life than in Europe, has devel-
oped a quicker sensibnity and more
irritable nerves. The inhalation of
chloroform has proved an irresistible
temptation to many, and women who
would scorn any indulgence in wine sip
eau de Cologne and other perfumes
Infinitely more dangerous than alco-
hol are these forms of inebriety in that
no revolving associations surround
them. Their victims do not regard
themselves as drunkards-at least, not
until the habit is fully formed. They
cannot identify their nervousness, their
faintness, their sleeplessness with the
cravings of the staggering Ioafer of the
street, nor the rest they obtain after the
dose with the stupor of vulgar drunk
enness. Therefore, to an extent which
is not generally realized women are
subject to this temptation. Their i'm
agination is not offended, and they can
usually obtain the drug they want with
out suspicion and carry it about In
convenient forms. 1t takes a long time
for even intimates to realize that the.
depression, the irritability, the varying
moods of a rigid abstainer arise from
drunkenness; we generally conceive
that condition as being due to only one
source. And drug habits of various
sorts become incurable just because no
one realizes that they are simply form
Of inebriety.
The general habit of drugging is to be
condemned. No healthy person needs
continual indicating with either diges-
tiyes, purgatives, tonics or sedatives. If
a doctor prescribes these things good
and we'll; he knows presumably when
to give and when to stop, but the ire
sponsible way in which people pour sub
stances far stronger than alcohol into
their systems would awaken ones ad-
miration of their courage if it did not
arouse ones indignation at their folly.
Cases have been known of ginger
drunkenness. Extracts of ginger popu-
lar among women as relieving func-
tional disturbances contain strong al
cohol disguised by the pungent spice.
Arsenic eating is not confined to Styria,
but is popular as an improvement to
the complexion among the society
DANES of Australia, while innocent peo-
pie take strychnine in their tonics with
out knowing it until they begin to feel
'jumpy' The danger is. twofold-first,
the directly injurious effects of the
chosen drug, and, secondly, the risk of
ignorantly clasping to ones breast a
viper more malignant than the drink
fiend." Alcohol we know and dread,
but these things-as dangerous as al
cohol-we take without any fear. And
while for men and women or different
race. dwelling in a hot and malarious
climate, quinine, opium and other drugs
may be not only harmless but even
wholesome, they are for US Anglo-Sax-
ons, except in rare ins iances, subtle and
pernicious foes-The l-C1Fffal.
One day the captain of the American
ship paid visit to the commander of
a British man-o'war at anchor in the
same harbor. The cockswain of the
gig was a great, lanky seaman. whose
backbone was so rounded as to form a
veritable hump. While the boat rested
at the gangway of the visited vessel the
English sailors gathered in the open
ports and took stock" in rather dis
dainful fashion, of the occupants of
the gig. At last. one of the seamen on
board the man-o'war called down to
the cockswain;:
If you smoke for pleasure use Sweet
Moments cigarettes. A superior article.
THE WEEKLY UNION - THE BEST
weekly on the coast.