518 BIOLOGY FOR BEGINNERS 



tion of the nervous system the centers of control develop in this 

 order: 



1. Heart and circulation control. 



2. Respiration. 



3. Walking and large muscles. 



4. Speech and other senses. 



5. Moral and intellectual control. 



The peculiar harm of the narcotic action of alcohol is, that it 

 impairs these nerve centers in reverse order. The higher emo- 

 tions, moral sense, modesty, judgment, and self-control are first 

 attacked, and from this effect arises the awful record of alcohol 

 as a cause of immorality and crime. Leaving the body control 

 but little impaired and able to carry out the impulses of a dis- 

 ordered mind, a man will commit crimes or perform acts which he 

 never would have thought of doing if his self-control had not been 

 affected by this dangerous narcotic drug. Further effects of al- 

 cohol are shown when the speech and sight centers are attacked, 

 as the thick speech and double vision of the alcoholic victim are 

 all too familiar evidence. Next the walking and other large muscles 

 are affected and the staggering gait and uncertain movements are 

 observed. Finally, the breathing is interfered with, the heart 

 action partially or wholly paralyzed, and the condition of " dead 

 drunkenness " or even death ensues. 



If the order of its effects were reversed, alcohol would not be 

 so dangerous, because the body would then be unable to carry 

 out the demands of the deranged brain. Unfortunately, this is 

 not the case, and herein lies one of alcohol's greatest biological 

 dangers. Furthermore, alcohol actually attacks the brain tissue, 

 causing irreparable harm and producing the morbid desire for more 

 liquor so characteristic of the victims of this awful habit. The 

 apparent " nerve stimulation," so frequently mentioned, is merely 

 the paralysis of sense and self-control, leaving the body to act, often 

 more violently, it is true, but never increasing its effective energy. 



" Even the feeling of rest due to slight indulgence in alcohol is 

 caused by its anaesthetic effect upon the sense of fatigue, which 

 is the safety valve of the human machine." Von Bunge. 



