298 STIMULANTS AND NARCOTICS 



Legal restrictions. Morphine, chloral and cocaine 

 have claimed so many victims that the law recognizes 

 their danger and limits their use as much as possible 

 by restricting their sale except upon a physician's order. 

 The physician in turn limits his order to the least amount 

 necessary to tide over the emergency which necessitates 

 its use. He further so words his prescription that it is 

 difficult for the patient to know what has been given 

 him or to get a second supply, except upon a new 

 prescription. 



Tobacco a narcotic. Although of much milder form 

 than the drugs which we have been considering, tobacco 

 has, nevertheless, their narcotic characteristics. It is 

 a sedative, allaying nervousness and to a certain extent 

 pain. It produces in habitual users a distinct crav- 

 ing, which is satisfied only by itself. It is not a food 

 and is taken solely for the pleasure which its use 

 gives. 



Method of use. The physiological effects which to- 

 bacco produces depend upon the manner and extent of 

 its use and the susceptibility of the user. In smoking, 

 the nicotin, which is the essential poison of the drug, 

 is volatilized from the tobacco by the heat. It is then 

 condensed upon the surface of the mouth, or, in the 

 inhalation of cigarette smoking, upon the surface of the 

 throat and bronchi as well. A part of it is lost by burn- 

 ing. In chewing, the nicotin is dissolved by the saliva 

 and absorbed by the mucous membrane of the mouth. 

 In snuff-taking, it is dissolved by the secretions of the 

 nose and is absorbed by its mucous membrane. There 

 is little fundamental difference between these methods, so 

 far as the effects of the drug upon the body are concerned. 

 In each, a certain amount of the nicotin is absorbed into 

 the system, where it produces its characteristic effect. 



