The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-05-17
ANCIENT TIPPLERS,
The First Gold Cure Was Invented
by the Arnbinns.


From the London Daily Chronicle
THE Treatment by State and People
of the Inebriate from 5000 3. c. to the
Present Time" was the subject of an
interesting lecture delivered by DR..
Lauzun Brown at the st. James Hall,
yesterday afternoon, under the aus
pieces of the National Sunday League.
On the syllabus the lecture was de-
scribed as "Repressive and Curative
Treatment Among the Ancient" but
DR.. Brown, recognizing that it would
be as hopeless to attempt to give even
meager idea of this within the short
space of time allotted to him, as it
would be to attempt to give an idea
of the Vastness of modern medicine and
surgery, very wisely confined his re-
marks to small portion only Of this
vast field of research, and traced chief
ly the development and extent of the
drinking customs among ancient ma
tons. He showed how it was attempt
ed by pill or potion or other cure, to
avoid the evil consequences arising
from Vinous intoxication, and by what
methods they sought to restore the lost
tone and lost vigor to the over-zealous
banqueter; and how, when all these
methods had failed, they attempted by
force and oppression, by penalties md
laws, to deal with those whose over
indulgence had become Ineligible by
a series of views collected from CLASH
cal sources.
Grape culture, said Dr. Brown, was
common in Egypt more than 5000 years
ago, but the earliest records on stone
indicated that bevera ges derived from
the fruits of the earth were used by
the human race at a more remote pc
riod. They were employed as an in
spring power, and regarded entirely
as gift from the gods. Nearly every
nation in the East originally regarded
these beverages as offerings fit to pre-
sent to theor dieties. They actually
created gods of corn and wine; they
had symbolic representations of this
deity Of wine, and these had been
handed down to US to indicate that they
thought these products of the earth of
very high religious and ceremonial use
Drinking customs among the eastern
nations of the past, the lecturer, con-
tinued, did not represent so much a
moral or physical infirmity as a kind
of divine exaltation, assumed to be
due to the influence of the god, and
the votary was then looked upon as
an exponent of the will of the deity
He had observed the same thing among
some of the tribes of West Africa. The
fetiShman was usually in a state of
intoXication, and was supposed by the
chiefs to give the best cures and the
Wisest counsels after copious libations
of palm wine or trade gin. 1t was to
these gods that we must ascribe the
origin of drinking habits. Libations
were poured out to the gods then to
those persons whose friends and rela-
tons were regarded as having some
attributes of the deity. Along with the
religious idea there sprang up among
the ancients the custom of using wine
socially. 1t was a transition step to
present-day habits. The customs which
at first had the stamp of the ceremon-
ial in the religious sphere soon per-
meated social life and intercourse. The
practices Of the court and its sur
rcundings spread to the people Wine
houses and other facilities for social
intercourse grew very numerous. At a
very early date the evil consequent
upon too frequent attendance at these
commercial establishments was soon
recognized and the priests of these an
cient empires framed many a kindly
worded admonition for the benefit of
these who tarried too long at the wine.
The first admonition of this kind was
dated 1866 B. c., and was the first
written warning against the danger of
paying over-frequent visits to the in
stitutions. The scribe wrote: "My son.
do not linger at the wine shops or
drink too much wine. 1t causes thee
to utter words regarding thy neigh
Dor, but thou remembered thou fall
est upon the ground, thy limbs become
weak as those of a child. One corneth
to do trade with thee and findeth thee
so. Then say they, Take away the fell
low, for he is drunk"
Referring to the strange methods
adopted by the ancients to prevent the
disastrous effects of drink, Dr. Brown
said oils were greatly used, and one
writer advised a good large draught
of salad oil to prevent the spirits as
cending into the brain.
The ancients used also the mineral
cure-antimony, zinc, copper and even
sand and earth. The Arabians were
the first he thought, to suggest the |
gold cure, thinking it must have great
virtue. 1t was at the best but a quack !
remedy. The quack kept the gold, and
gave the patient water. The alcoholic |
quacks made the most out of this |
cure.