The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1914-05-11
LONDON NEWS LETTER

London, May IL The drink bill of
the United Kingdom for the past year
shows an increase of SIS, OOO, 900. The
United Kingdom Alliance, whose
mission is to decrease the consumption
Of alcoholic liquors, makes this report
and suggests that the increase is prob
ably due to unprecedented prosperity,
for the Kingdom had never experience
ed a greater wage bill. The encourag-
ing feature, according to the alliance
is a decrease shown in the per capita
consumption, which attained its maxi
mum during similar trade r~eviVals in
1874 and 1899.
A diSCOuraging feature is the in
crease in the consumption Of spirits,
which leads with an increase of 1 ,261,-
600 gallons. Beer is second with L.
002.00 gallons and wine third with
$4,000 gallons. The share Of each
individual in the United Kingdom in
the drink bill for 1913 was SIS while
the average for a family of five per-
sons was 500. Since these figures dc
not ALLOW for the boys and girls under
- years OF age and the total abstain
crs, it may be assumed that among the
drinkers the average per capita OK
0N' ~ ii"Nl1 4ilSl(l lldll
stated.
During 1911. 2,802 men and 2,O74
women were certified to have died in
England and Wales alone as the re-
suit of alcoholism. This number does
not include those whose deaths have
been accelerated by the use OF alcohol.
DR.. w. c.. Sullivan is quoted in the
report as making the estimate that
20 per cent Of the suicides in the Unit
cd Kingdom are due to the use of
alcoholic stimulants.
A startling feature OF the infant
mortality figures furnished by the alli-
ance Is the fact that in 1872, Its
babies under l year of age were suffO-
Gated while sleeping with their parents
or other elders, and the organization
claims that most Of these cases can
De AID at the door Of alcoholic indulg-
enCe. The organization also points
out the effect of alcohol on the physi-
que OF the race. on crime and on
divorces.
Without anaesthcsia or modern in
Struments, native surgeons among the
Bedouins Of the Algerian hinterIand
have become so skilful thai thcv do
not hesitate to undertake operations
as delicate as t~repannlng. This rcpOrt
is brought by H, Hylton-Simrson,
who, accompanied by his wife, has lust
returned from d scientific expedition
among these almost unknown nomadic
tribes of the desert. The explorer and
his wife lived among the natives and
established the closest relations with
the ruling sheiks Of remote villages.
They found that surgery had grown
TO be n re2lIy skilled profession. Hyl-
ION -Slmpson was lucky enough to
come into contact with a friendly Ara
blan physician who arranged a meet
ing for him with eight of the tribal
surgeons. From them he collected a
mass of interesting information and a
valuable collection OF native surgical
instruments. Their saws, lancets and
probes are Of the crudest design, but
prove highly effective in the hands of
their native operators. The onIv
training these native surgeons have is
instruction from their fathers. Verv
few Of them are able to read or write.
Trepannlng operations are probably
more common in this country than
anywhere else in the world because of
the frequency with which the natives
resort to stone throwing in a fight.
The use Of an anaeSthetic is unknown
and pain Is regarded with such CON
tempt that the people seem impervious
to it. Hylton-Siml son saw one case
in which a boy was operated on for
fifteen days for the removal Of a small
piece Of skull. The operation was sue
Cessful and the patient recovered. Be
sides surgery the natives claim to have
discovered 200 cures for various dis
eases.