Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1900-04-14
SATURDAY April ID, 1900
sEEy 2 ~ 2Il5laanea
'HlsNE4a7Ip7E9
ATwATER DIscREDITED.
ais InvestiEation to Prove That Al
eohoI Is "A Food Subjected to
Most Searching Inquiry.

IL will be remembered, says the
Christian Work, that widespread dis
eussion was caused by certain state
ments made by Prof Atwater, of
Wesleyan university, year ago in re-
gard to the nutritive value of alco-
hol. AS n result of an extended series
of experiments the professor came to
the conclusion that alcohol has value
as food. This conclusion being con-
trary to generally accepted idea,
aroused great deal of comment,
much of it adverse to the position
taken by Prof. Atwater. The ques-
ton created so much interest that a
committee was appointed at the
North6e1d summer conference of
Christian workers, August IL, 1899, to
investigate the statements of Prof.
Atwater, and bring in report. This
report has just been issued in 1e-
page pamphlet entitled "An Appeal
to Truth" The committee acted in
cooperation with the advisory board
o. the National Temperance societies,
the Presbyterian Woman's Temper
ance association, the permanent COM
mittee on temperance of the general
conference of the Methodist Episco-
pal church, the permanent committee
on temperance of the PRESBYTERIAN
church, the National Woman's Chris
tian Temperance union, the Massa-
chusetts Total Abstinence society, the
national department OF scientific in
struction and the Non Partisan
National Woman's Christian Temper
ance union, Under these auspices the
data furnished by Prof. Atwater as
the result of his experiments at Mid
dletown were subjected to search
ing analysis by leading experts in
physiological chemistry, and the fol-
lowing deductions were made:
First-Prof. Atwater says his ex-
periments proved that alcohol is OK
ldized in the body. This is not denied.
but it is denied that Prof. Atwater's
claim proved alcohol to be n food.
Many poisons besides alcohol are OK
idized in/the body. The Middletown
experiments are said to prove that
alcohol iii being oxidized in the body
furnishes heat and energy. This
again, is denied. But the assertion is
made that the claim proves nothing
in favor of alcohol, because its iniuri-
Gus action at the same time far out
weighs the value of the heat and en-
ergy it liberates, as is the case with
other poisons oSidized.iu the body.
Second-Prof. Atwater in his ex-
periments proved that alcohol pro-
tects the materials OF the body from
consumption just as effectively as
corresponding amounts of sugar.
starch and fat. But eminent scien-
tific authorities testify that these
statements are not supported by his
own figures in the tables of his first
official data, bulletins published by
the department. of agriculture in 1899.
This is the testimony.of professors oc-
cupying the chairs of pathological
chemistry in the university and Belle
vue Hospital Medical society. New
York; of physiology in the Medical
school of Northwestern University,
Chicago; of hygiene in the Medico-
Chirurgical college of PHILADELPHIA.
and of a former professor in the
Philadelphia Polytechnic and College
for Graduates.
Third-These scientists. after care
full study of Prof. Atwater's report,
come to the same conclusion viz, that
his tables do not show that alcohol
protected the body material. but
show, on the contrary a distinct loss
of heterogeneous material when alcohol
was administered. The entire testi-
mony in IAN Appeal to Truth" does
show that, according to his own
tables, Prof. Atwater's costly expert
ments have produced no evidence to
sustain his charge of error against
the present temperance teaching that
alcohol is not a food, but poison.