The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1902-01-01
THE GREAT DEs50TER
SOME STARTLING FAcTs\u,,..
THE VICE OF lNTEMPERE 80
The Cost to the Community OF the
Drunksrd, and His Degenerate,Sd
ulous Chiidren-Alcoholism De6-
n--If---..x A.. sr-n.~~,,rnnSa q

The Cost to the Community OF tno ~
Drunkard, and His Degenerate,sd i
ulous Children-Aleohoiism Def
PrsdIsposes to Tuberculosis.
In different countries of the world
listers who have icnarge of the 6nanciaR
partment like to calculate the sum @z
State gets fromSthe duty on alcohol, b q
they should deduct from it the cost to tA
community of the family OF the ruinet
drunkard, his degenerate, infirm. scrofuA
lous and epileptic children, who must hayeN
shelter. The invasion of alcoholism ought
toHbe regarded by everyone as. q pubic
danger, and this principle, the truth Of
which is incontestable, should be lncul:
Gated into the masses, that the future Of
the world may be in the hands OF the TEN.
perate. q.
In the Edinburgh Medical journal for
September is an article by DR.. Kelynack,
of Manchester, which follows the same hne
of argument. DR.. KelyEack' puts the. po.
sition as regards the aspects from which
the question is viewed by present-dayy
scientific men as follows: ~ That alco.s
holism is antagonistic to tuberculosis; (2l3
that alcoholism bears no special relation
ship to tuberculosis; (3) that alcoholism.
definitely predisposes to Tuberculosis and ]
he gives the views OF well3LnoHn ph
cians of various countries bearing yoR the
point at issue. So 3ft
Flint used alcohol freely, that is, from
six ounces to a pint Of spirit daily, and
appears to have mad a frm belief in its
efficiency in the treatment ct tuberculosis
Chartens, writing in 1877, concerning the
administration Of whisky to phthisical pa;
tients, says:N I'm priyete practice order
it to be taken ad ibitum." Hermann
Weber expressed himself in like terms,q 3
but Bell, of New York, as far back an
1855 opposed the view, then generally cuiI
rent, of the beneficial influence Of large
quantities of spirit on the course Of prl..
monary tuberculosis. II X
That alcoholism definitely predisposeas
to tuberculosis has of recent years ne
ceived much support, and the theory w3'I
appear to be gaining ground at q rap
rate. Hector Mackenzie bslieves that
cOh9lism must be regarded az q powsrfu]
refers to the subject thus: It sEas sfor(
merly thought that alcohol wTs IN soIf
way antagonistic to tubercrlous disse
but the observations of late years irdic
clearly that the reverse is the case, q
that chronic drinkers are much more la'y
Bile to both acute and pulmonary tpbcfcu-y
losis. It is probably altogether a Question
of altered tissue soil, alcohol lowering
the vitality and enabling the bacilli more
readily to develop and grow" Dr.. Kelly
mack himself says that, having had excep-s
tional opportunities of studying large num-
bers of cases among workhouse and hospi-d
tai patients, he is convinced that the pub
lie house or saloon must be copsidered az !
one of the most serious obstacles to the
speedy and effectual stamping out OF tu.
berculosis. . - :, -,
Italians, Germans and physicians Of
other countries who have studied the efs
fects of alcoholism in connection with tu-
berculosis have arrived at similar conclu-
sions. =; It is further contended by some
that, in addition to q general impairment
of vitality and pernicious environment.
there is a special ,,rejudical influence aris.s
ing from the action OF tie "a ihol and its
associates. This, as, DR.. Ke poiptS
out, is very hard to prove, al
and until investigations have
elucidated the matter, we n
tent with the knowledge alrea
that alcohol exerts little or nj
influence on the course of t
but that, on the contrary, it te
dispose to the malady those WI
it to any extent. Indirectly
the fact is undeniable that
prominent cause Of tuberculd
ering the vitality of its subjed
ing poverty and necessitatinj
healthy surroundings, by eau
alton of the individual and ol
by these means rendering the
susceptible and prone to infecti9
preston of alcoholism should ga
hand with that of tuberculo
York Medical Record. -