542 



SCIENCE OF HOME AND COMMUNITY 



And yet the 7 1 per cent (the drinkers) won only 40 per cent 

 of the prizes, while the 29 per cent (the abstainers) won 60 

 per cent of the prizes. As a result of using beer these 

 athletes won only about half as many prizes as they would 

 have done had they not used beer. The injurious effects of 

 alcohol are well understood in athletic circles in colleges, 

 and men who are training for the football and other athletic 

 teams are not allowed to use alcohol. 



The effect of alcohol on the nerves in shooting is shown 

 in figure 215. Out of 30 shots, those soldiers who had not 



1st Series. No Alcohol Average No. of Hits 23 



2nd Series. Alcohol Taken Average No. of Hits 3 



3rd Series. No Alcohol Average No. of Hits 



FIG. 215. Rifle shooting in Sweden, showing effect of alcohol upon steadiness of 

 nerve. Length of black bars shows average numbers of hits of soldiers in 30 

 shots. Three tablespoonfuls of alcohol were taken for the second series. 



taken alcohol made 24^ hits, an average of 8 if per cent; 

 while those who had taken alcohol made only 3 hits, an 

 average of only 10 per cent. What a difference this would 

 make in a battle ! 



Effect of alcohol on length of life. One of the strongest 

 arguments against alcohol is the fact that its use shortens 

 life, so that a person who uses alcohol will probably die 

 sooner than he would if he were an abstainer (barring, of 

 course, death by accident). This is known from records 

 that have been kept for many years by life insurance com- 

 panies. One company in England divides its members into 

 two classes, abstainers and moderate drinkers. Records 

 of forty years show that among total abstainers deaths were 

 but 71.5 per cent of the calculated probabilities, while among 



