The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-10-31
LIQUOR men TRY
TO CAPITALIZE
FLU" EPIDEMIC
Circulate Stories That
WWFfhiiskey IS Valuable
AS Remedy.
is PROMPT
Physicians Warn Public
That Alcohol Is Dan
gerous, Especially
Right Now.

their advantage?
Unbelievable as this may seem, re-
ports coming from different secuohs
OF the country indicate there Is con-
certed movement under way to give
the discredited whiskey business
respecta BILE standing by setting up the
claim that whiskey is saving the lives
OF thousands Of our soldier boys both
as n preventative and as a cure for
influenza
While the leading scientists are
working frantically 70 discover a vac
cine to combat the plague, the vets
publicity men settle the whole prob
lem, at least to their own satisfac-
ton. with the fippant and almost
criminal statement that booze will
insure ore against contracting the
disease.
Just how proving whiskey efhcacl-
Gus as remedy for influenza would
Justify the continuance Of the poison
az a beverage or how it would rilitate
against ratification Of the national
prohibition amendme ont or against
the abortion of statewide prohihi-
ton in any state. is not made known
hv the booze interests. There Is moth
ing in the national prohibition
amendment nor in any proposed
statewide law tina prohibits the use
of alcohol for meAj sinai purposes.
AS sample Of booze triekery
which cornpels the belief that the lia-
uor mon ere trying 20 capitalize the
epidemic to their advantage the fol-
lowing Boston incident is notable:
A letter over the signature of j. j
Doherty, president of the Boston
Liquor Dealers association. was
sent to the doctors Of that city sue-
costing to them that If any of their
patients were financially unable to
purchase whiskev or alcoholic stmu-
lants for purpose To combat the in
saenza that the "ber evolentII liquor
dealers association would furnish il
without cost while the epidemic con-
tinues. The concluding paragraph of
the letters shows tn what lengths the
booze interests will GO to save their
own skins If possible. 1t reads as fol-
lows:
This letter is sent after talk
with Or. Woodward who suggests that
any offer should he made direct rather
than through the he nth commissions
Office
II VIII he seen that this para graph
seems to put quasi official indorse-
nlent by DR. Woodward. who Is health
commissioner or Boston, upon kshze
as remedy Now the facts in the
nounced that he did not authorize any
such use of his name, but said:
Il have actually been asked by the
liquor interests n l was back of the
widespread rush Or rum of late; il,
in fact. | did nnG 04~pcate its use to
ward off possible GnnDenza attacks
Nothing could bo 00o unwise than
the use of liquor - : V0uld not rec
ommend it under avg circumstances"
The fact is. the widespread rush"
for booze did not materialize in the
city of Boston.
Then. too, the report was current
that large quantities of booze were
used in Camp De~ns Mass. A dis
patch from the camp to the Boston
Post of October says:
''Whiskey does not hold any posi-
ton in the opinion of the medical
corps as a preventative against influ-
enza and pneumonia, and none is be-
ing used as a preventative"
The dispatch stated that whiskey
is given only to those accustomed to
it to induce sweating that other med
icine is used for this effect with
others
Wild stories of carloads of booze
shipped into Camp Sherman. Chilli
Gothic. Ohio. are being spread through
personal agents of the liquor dealers
and few newspapers that would car
ry the story. At first the amount
given was several barrels. That grad
ually grew until the latest reports have
it several carloads. This wild story
is knocked in the head by the fol-
lowing statement from Major James
F. G. Duvall, camp adjutant:
There is not a word of truth in
the statement that carloads of whis-
be- ho eh nd fn
counteract the epidemic at Camp
Sherman. An offer was made to fun
nish whiskey and was emphatical1y
refused"
These personal agents OF the booze
interests who are boosting whiskey as
a preventative and cure are meet
ing with success however. among a
certain element. A news dispatch
from Steubenville. Ohio, tells how on
a single Saturday night twentyfour
down and outers were taken into the
police station drunk on scat" booze
without single exception. these men
were unconscious. When they regain
ed consciousness they explained that
they had taken the booze to ward off
influenza. Similar reports came from
eastern cities.
The facts are that the medical pro-
fession Is agreed that the drinking
man has less chance for recovery from
pneumonia than the abstainer, and it
is not surprising that those seven
prominent physicians who were call
ed into consultation by. Health Com
missioner Robertson, in giving a list
Of things to avoid. specified as second
on the list Avoid the use of alcoholic
liquors under the guise of stimulants."
Alcohol has been excluded from the
pharmacopocia Of the United States.
II has been condemned by the Amer
lean Medical association. and for the
booze interests. at this time when
SO many OF our splendid young SOL
diers are dying from this epidemic
ana which is taking such an awful
toll OF life in our cities and villages,
TO attempt to make capital out Of
this plague shows to what depths they
will 80 TO win their point
This Ia an added reason why they