The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1901-01-31

sinthe is the bane of the nation and is
killing France
But absinthe is not the only drink of
fashionable and cultivated Paris. IT
has come to be the national drink Of
all classes of the French people. Wom-
en- drink it as well as men, and the chill
dren of absinthe drinkers are often de-
formed and partially paralyzed,
Absinthe is a liquor made by pound
ing the leaves and towering tops of va
rious varieties of wormwood which
grow from two to four feet high in
great profusion under cultivation. and
various other aromatic plants and Gov
ering the mass with alcohol After
soaking for eight days the compound
is distilled, yielding a green liquor, to
which a certain percentage of anise
seed oil is usually added. 1t was first
made by couple of old Swiss women.
who found it a good remedy and pre-
ventive for fevers. 1t is said to be still
possible to get the pure absinthe in the
better class of French cafes, but in this
country and in England. as in the
greater number of French drinking
places, the stuff served as absinthe is
said to be adulterated with all sorts of
vile drugs, including even vitriol. to
give it an extra bite" The best alb
sinthe is still made in Switzerland. i'm
mense quantities of it being turned out
at Neufchatel, from which canton more
than 100000 gallons is annually ex-
ported, a considerable portion eventu-
ally coming to the United States.
The effects of absinthe on people
who drink it habtually are admitted
by medical men to be worse than those
which follow the use of brandy or other
strong spirits. 1t soon becomes to it's
devotees the first necessity of life. To
getit they will sacrifice anything. TAX
en- by novice and in small doses, it has
for a time pleasant effects.
In Paris and in the south of France
its devotees are almost numberless. A
Frenchman who goes TO his cafe for
luncheon or dinner sits at table in
front, and, while his order is being
prepared, sips his glass of absinthe as
he looks over the papers. From five to
seven o'clock in the evening is the rec
ognized ''absinthe hour" The absinthe
is usually prepared by being poured
into a glass with some sirup or lump
sugar, into which water is allowed to
fall drop by drop. The fashionable
Frenchman is not likely to drink more
than one glass before a meal, and that
diluted, though French women are saio
to drink it pure, and in the poorer sec
tons of the city it is drunk before
during and after meals. In the better
cafes it is sold at ten cents drink anC
in the slums it may be had for a penny
glass. The allowance of an absintht
drinker must be regularly increased il
order to produce the desired and accus
toned effect, and so sooner or later the
boulevard absinthe Slippers are almos
certain to become slaves of the liquor
On men who are far gone with it,
poison the green terror" sometimes
has most remarkable effects. Baude
Iaire, for instance, the poet who trans
lated Poe into French, wrote poems t.
s'The Green Spirit" and addressed it a
his mistress. He lived apparently TO
nothing else than to drink absinthe
and once in fit of crazy enthusiasm
actually painted his hair vivid greer
20 that it might correspond with tn