The Detroit times., 1916-03-15

tcisine physician Of san JOSS. Ceas
or many years Addictsd 90 dsycvc
without rsssrvs-how he Won the
sAtus.
NO. I4-gupHoRlA or pRuos
In previous chapters l have al
ready told you that the mental az
lltation and sense Of physical we'll
being that obtains during the nrst
lew weeks or mouths OF the habit
ual use q opium does not continue
throughout the Subsequent years OF
addiction. Please get that statement
well nxed In your minds. Why! Be
cause many good people, including
both physicians and Lawmakers. be-
lieve that the confirmed Opium user
u merely catering 10 vicious habit
from which he derives SONS sort OF
IN abnormal pleasure. Such charge
can truthfully be made against the
habitues Of cocaine, and. in . mea'
sure, against those OF alcohol; nut
never against those Of opium. The
opium user must take his drug. He
would die. or .suiler all the ayonies
OF cruciflxion, II he didn't. This he
knows--and he also knows that he
no longer experiences the slightest
euphorial effect following fresh
dose.
BY way OF compsrisDn In this re-
gard. let M now consider alcoholic
liquors. No matter fW how long. or
In what quantities an individual has
consumed such liquors. he can still
experience the alcoholic euphoria--
be can still get drunk. II may take
more than at the beginning to pro-
duce such an cfbect: but. even
though the alcoholic habitue has for
so years been In close communion
with his favoritc beverage. he can
still get q glorious old flag" on--he
can still get the euphoria.
But not so with opium. That siren
admits her victim TO the luxurious
ness Of her embraces only for such
. time ~ is necessary to make him
her slave. Then she fades away.
leaving him tn continually pay her
tribute for the right to live only.
Now lei us take the case OF CO
cainc. I have already represented
Il to you az the most seductive OF
drugs-but that depends. To get
that seductfveness there must be a
supporting quantity OF opium or
morphine already in ihe system. A
Joy. giving amount OF cocaine cannot
otherwise be taken--it would prove
almost instantly fatal IL II were.
Let me see II can explain this
dangerous and sometimes fatal ef'
feet OF cocaine when administered
60 person not under the steadying
Influence Of an opiate. II will be
remembered that in relating my per.
sonal experiences following the sud
den withdrawal OF my morphine.
while a patient In DR.. C.'s one-pill-
cure sanatorium. have already
told you how my heart ran riot
when no longer under its restraining
control. How respiration became dis
tressingly rapid. shallow. irregular.
and unsatisfying from the same
cause. Now. that is Just about what
happens to q person. not under the
inh1bitory influence Of opium or NOR
phine. when a full physiological dose
OF cocaine II hypodermically admin.
1stsred. because 1t destroys the nor
mai inhibitory control OF respiration
and circulation.
But, you say. II cocaine IL 80 dan
Eerous a. all that, how about Its In.
discriminate use in dental practice
why doesn't II kill there! occa,
sionally II does; and when II does
the physician. hurriediy called in
from an adjoining once perhaps,
gives a certificate OF death from
heart failure. Should the case 30 to
. coroner's jury, II renders the same
verdict. The doctors certificate Is
correct. The jury's verdict II cor.
rect. But IL was the cocaine that
caused the heart failure--which
fact does not appear in the doctors
certificate nor In the jury's verdict.
The reason why so few deaths oc-
cur In the dental chair In because
euf'icient cocaine to produce such
result is rarely used on . single pa
tient at a single sitting. Let US say.
for instance. that the dentist Is
using ave per cent solution. Now,
Il would take syringeful eco min
Sms) Of such q solution to equal one
grain Of cocaine. The human gum
Ia q very tough and closely woven
mass Of tissue. It's interstices will
not hold very much liquid. Only q
drop or two can be forced In Of any
single point Of injection, ana most
Of that runs back out when the
needle Ii withdrawn--but suflicisnt
remains to produce momentary 10
cal anesthesia.
However. the euphoria of cocaine
IL not produced by such an amount.
nor by any amount, excepting In the
physiological preseece Of an opiate.
But. with an opium basis already IN
the system, cocaine never fails to
give Ito soul4nspir1ng and hallucf
mating euphofia. Thus we see II IL
the combined effects OF these two
drugs that produceS the cocaine
euphoria--neither OF them having
any such power By itself alone.