The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-03-30
Il v r r r r r. n r r.
SCIENTIFIC SALAD
'lnaccurate knowledge Is a dangerous thing,
So in all things let us he accurate"


IS beverage. Hr. be1ynsky's papct is printed
IN the current number Of the Medical Record.
with summary vi the discussion OF the subject
which followed the reading of the paper before
the New York County Medical society. The doc.
tor admits at the outset that coffee, when well
prepared, Is beyond question one oi the am.
broSial luNuics OF modern life. lie saws that il
would b" is wrong to condemn It's use indscrim.
inatcy IS to deny That under certain conditions
IL was harmful The object of the paper Is
stated TO he to show that in effects following tie
use oi coffee are by no means uncommon.
Coffee, the physician said. is an autidutc 10
alcohol, Us Ear as the nervous system is con.
cerncd, and, therefore, it is not uncommon Tor
the same person to he addicted 10 the excessive
Use ot both. lie quoted Love on "1he Jsu and
Abisc Of Coffee ds saying that "n CXccs, /. Is
even more dangerous than alcohol. for il is not,
like the latter, nutrient, nor is its effect in
excessive use SO apparent or 20 urrcspcptahlc."
lie incidentally remarks that coffee, "propcrly
made and property used" is by no means
harmful ard those members OF the county m,di.
,t society who took part in the discussion also
expressed their opinions that coffee as a beverage,
we'll prepared and taken ia moderation. was
not harmful The lecturer and thU,, vino dis
,d.Scd his paper were satisfied with stating
thcir own private opinions. based upon more or
less extensive per, ,pnil cNrcrirucc, and did not
t"ncl upon the vil point oi the question. viz,
under what conditions and in what quantities
may coffee become hlrntug Thi, Is a question
which is ct the greatest importance tu the gc,l.
clal public aud Que which la, received hu. .cant
attention from ,cicutiHc Investigators. ,o scaut,
indeed. tudt most educated persons know lilue
ur nest {" nothing Jhout the true inwJtiurss,
t" Use rolloqhllisn. ~ the effects the differ.
mt narcotics 90 which coffee belongs, and under
wha; circumstance, aud conditions they are hcnc.
u,it ur proiudicil 10 Our well being. This
igupi jncc makes Il possible for temperance en-.
thu-iIsts tp wage wr against not only alco.
huli-u, but also aua.u,t tobacco and, lately,
even coffee, 10y Publishing most exaggerated and
idlsfcd statements ot ia,ts which. gthough they
are Tar removed from the trulh and are TEE cT.
rnutou> conclusions arrived gt by biased mind
from false premises, are. nevertheless, believed
10 Ia absolute ruth, and ar repeated as such by
those who should know better
M narcotics contain what at tcrmcl lctivn
principles. Which may hc separated from the
plant, aud tu which !, largely owes IT. u4gcctc
effect, but an these plants ntJin also a grratcr
on les, humber oi minor active principles, which
also have been Isolated aud individually produce
u.drrtut effects from the main one. These dif.
icrCut principles together, however. 4, IN coffee,
tea. totIoco and 50 torth, produce an effect which
ur'hrr alon" ,du produce. 50 II j. rot the
clAciur alone which makes coffee thn national
ana ALMOST univcr.i, beverage ot whole nations
ana acts b'h'd.!t'N up"h h'r nervous system,
hn' tt j. 'hc combined action %, th',r different
rr.n. ipl",, Upon their combined action depends
also the Havor ard strength Of the different
hrandi ui thc same plant Is raised under different
conditions ut .oil and climate, and il j. but
reasonable 10 suup"-" that the different n,v"rs
and potency oi different brand, 'rt caused not
Icy admHGc "r omission of on" "I th" "hcr
cf the principles. hut rpou thch relative Pre-.
pnnderan,c ov,r each other il different bGnlt 80
that the mo't puicrt ri thrm, tho caffeine in
coiter Tor instance. may be made very much
weaker IN its effect, hy ono or two oi the others
hclug in prCppndcrartc in ono case, whll' IN an.
other the caffeine effect may bc Increased by
the greater weakness ot III" minor active princi.
pes acting in conjunction with it. The same ci'
'cct may alsp naturally h. produced in ia" pre-.
paIaiion at coffee ~ u beverage. which in th"
mIn consists in'thc extraction Of these active
principles, together with some ot the colornc
matter and the fannie acid, 10y means oi boiling
water But il tii, process /, not carried ont
properly th" different principles arc MOI extract.