The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1910-05-14


OA prospered. He went
60 into politics and was
347zzzszazSlzzzAn8 successful He was
elected to the Iegis-
iature. became president of the state
senate. and in such esteem was he
held that there seemed to be no Of
flee within the gift of the people to -:
which he might not reasonably aspire ti{E
Then opium claimed him as a de- i{i5
votee-not directly, but through NOR :ftJ
phine one of its derivatives. | do .--.-
not know how he acquired the habit.
but the effect was apparent he
began slipping backward = down r.
down, down-much more rapidly than Nh
ne had climbed up. In short time Mn
ne was out of politics. and a little MN
later he was out of business. The BM
foundations of success that he had RHH
laid with such labor and palms. crum- MIN
bled away; he became a "fend" a NUN
pitiable wreck of an able man, by HAM
word and joke among the more W(N\
thoughtess of those who knew him WYNN
IN time he reached a point where WN\
he borrowed" from anybody who \N>
would lend" him anything from \\N
nickel to & dollar, So strong was the Y
instinct of the nan In him. even then.
that he would accept nothing as
gift, but resorted to the miserable
makeshift of entering every loan"
however small, IN a notebook that he
carried for that purpose. Could any
thing be more pathetic than the pic
ture of a man of his attachments and 80
early promise borrowing" Is cents mi
or a quarter that both he and tbe "a
lender knew he never would or could 81
repay? Yet he always insisted upon M
this form. s
This story would unquestionably lM
have more horrible ending were # M NN
not for the fact that the victim had -
a devoted and prosperous brother ez=zsazaz
This fact kept the 'tfend" out of the euttnr for
provision was always made for his material wants
although 1t was quite impossible to intrust him
with the money for his board lodging and other
necessities The brother did all that was NOS
slble to do to break the habit, and he finally suc
ceeded In getting the unfortunate one into an
asylum and under the watchful care of physicians
The habit was there broken but the patient near
ly died in the breaking Furthermore the harm,
mad been DONE and, although the man never went
back to morphine, he never was anything but a
miserable wreck, of no use to himself or tn any,.
one else. His brother provided for him, but he
continued to be joke or tragedy (as YOU ham
pened to look at it,, to the day of his death and
he died miseraby.
That's one story of opium in one form. a nrom-
3stng career checked in the very moment
81 It's greatest PROMISE and then ruined There
are many others, where there is no devoted broth
ere that will surpass it in horrid details of degra
dation, but the very fact that this man with all
Che uplifting Influences and help that he had fell
SO swiftly and so far makes his story impressive
and Illuminating
Struggled opium drifts naturally into those
channels that lead to its vicious and harmful use,
Duty-paid opium is also thus used to large ex.
tent. but the struggled article is almost wholly
2or that market Indeed without that market
3bere would be little smuggling
There are restrictions placed upon the sale of
opium ana It's derivatives, but these restrictions
cannot we'll be made to apply to what is contra
Oaha anyhow and liable to confscation wherever
found. Neither national nor state government can
successfully regulate the sale and use of an ar
licle that neither is able to find So smueeled
opium NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. subterranean channels
ma reaches g2ose who would have difficulty in
buying openly The very fact that 1t is contra
land compels it to seek this market, and the very
act that this market is under the ban of the
aw compels it TO depend largely upon the cont-s
'and article. The fact that it is cheaper than
he duty-paid article also commends 1t, but that
S merely incidental
Struggled opium It is for the most part that
upplies the opium Joints" and the Joints" not
My cater to the smuggled article but create
he habits that make the demand for it.
Morphine is derivative Of opium and is proper
to be considered herewith Opium contains
n average of about nine or ten per cent. of NOR
hine There are also other derivatives Of opium
hat produce some of the sensations the '.fend"
earns to crave. but morphine alone seems to take
2e grip on him that becomes a habit He
asses quite easily and naturally from opium to
orphine, usually taking it internally at first, and
len with the needle" It is a saying among
MUSICIANS that "a man is lost when he begins
use the needle" This is net to be understood
meaning that alp opium-users, or even ma
rity OF them, pass to morphine, or that all NOR