The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-12-13


cohol in many parts of the island. and re-
straints are also put upon 1t in Algeria.
What is true of the army is true of the
navy. The minister of education has shown
the greatest activity in having anti-alco-
holic teaching in the schools. What was to
be or not to be taught has been carefully
studied by competent commissions, and this
has given its character to pedagogic anti
alcoholism. Few are the postoffices In
which there is not some kind of inscription
of warning against the great foe. The
churches have not been idle. Certain bishops
of the Roman Catholic Church have been
full Of zeal and Protestants have very in
teresting works waging against strong
drinks.
The fact is that, apart from those who
are economically and professionally inter-
ested In the making or sale of alcohol, the
anti-alcoholic policy finds general sup
port. The results Of temperance efforts are
already visible. Social customs are chang
ing In hotels one not infreQuently sees
men drinking milk and water. Friends no
longer offer so readily the traditional
liquors as in former days. Fermented
drinks have taken the place of distilled
ones in many instances and social courte-
sizes tend to take a different form. The
revenue tax has been increased. In Paris
pure alcohol pays $0.S3 Of duties per liter,
but wines. cider and beers have been al
most freed. A first result was the decrease
of distilled beverages and an increase Of
the hygienic. This principle has worked in
many localities. In a certain village OF the
ward the poor peasant who was formerly
accustomed to take his one or two-cent
drink of wretched brandy made Of beet
root alcohol, water and coloring matter,
has now established the usage Of the one
cent glass of beer. 1t Is not possible to
generalize. Some parts of France are very
temperate. but the fact remains that the
habit Of taking large quantities of alcoholic
drinks as a regular beverage has wrought
much harm. Doctors tell their patients to
their establishment that they are alcoolise's.
They answer, but 1 have never been
drunk in my lifer' They realize at last the
cumulative action of successive drinking.
SCIENTIFIC FIGHT.
When one looks into the present situation
one realizes the justification for the intense
feelings which exist among the best French
citizens and especially among scientific men.
Even the latter have but little patience with
the attempt at mitigating the condemnation
that rests upon alcohol. About year ago
DR.. Duclaux, the president of the Pasteur
Institute, gave in the Annales de L Institut
Pasteur a report upon the experiments of
DR.. Atwater, of Wesleyan, who had reached
conclusions that alcohol possesses nutritive
qualities and is positively food This pa
per raised quite a storm of protest from
men of high scientific attachments. One OF
the first was from the Pasteur Institute
itself. written by DR.. Roux. well known for
his anti-diphtheritic vaccine Without, how
ever, denying the theoretical results
reached by DR.. Atwater, he urged the anti
alcoholists to continue their work as be-
fore. DR.. Wetchnikoff. of the same institu-
ton, concludes his letter by saying, "As
to myself, am persuaded that alcohol is a
poison. The celebrated French chemist,
Bartholet, writes that "alcohol is not a
FOOD, and that DR.. Atwater has not con-
cluded that alcohol is true food, that is
to say, is capable of Incorporating itself
into the organism" Most of the professors
of the Paris School of Medicine were about
of the same mind. DR.. Charles Rinet, of
that institution, admits that alcohol may be
food, but asks, us it good food?" Alcohol
is not taken because it is food. The Re-
vue des Deux Mondes had a most able
article by Professor Dartre, who expressed
the opinion that DR.. Atwater's experiments
are inconclusive and that with his great OPP
portunties he had not reached results much
more satisfactory than those scientists in
Europe who had operated with more lin
tied resources. The comic papers took up
the question from the realm of scientific in
vestigation to that of the painful realities
of our social life. L Illustration, in one of
its cartoons, agreed with DR.. Atwater that
there is food in alcohol, often 1.-The bread of
whole family"
ALCOHOL IS CONDEMNED.
The discussions occasioned by DR.. Du-
clauxs report have forced the authorities
to do something more. The Academy of
Sciences was asked to study, with the great
est care. the constitution of some of the
most noxious drinks and their action upon
public health. DR.. Debone made report
upon that subject before the Council of Pa
ris Charities The report of that eminent
scientist was one of the most scathing i'm
peachments of alcohol ever made in France.
The project of the Seine and the director
of public charities had a part of this re-
port published in the form of posters which
were put up in every part of the city-some
of them are still to be seen. AS these post
ers are strong appeal to abstain from the
use of strong drinks. the Association of
Wine and Liquor Merchants of Paris ran to
the defense of their business They I'm turn
made use of posters that were scattered
abroad like the others They quoted the re-
port of the Atwater experiments. on their
side. In addition to this they threatened
the project and the director of charities with
a lawsuit for damages to their business. 1t
was In an atmosphere charged with feelings
of this kind that the congress opened.
The congress was larSely composed Of