214 PHYSIOLOGY. 



Effects of Larger Doses of Alcohol. Larger doses of 

 alcohol, or more than what might be called moderate 

 drinking, are usually followed by more giddiness, diminished 

 sensibility of the skin, partial loss of control of the muscles, 

 as shown in speech and gait ; the eyes cease to work in 

 harmony, and the person may see double ; nausea is a 

 common effect ; and (without attempt to dwell on such 

 offensive details) after a time stupor comes on. In such 

 drunken sleep the temperature has been known to fall as 

 low as 75 F. From this it is very evident how foolish 

 it is for one who is exposed to severe cold to drink alco- 

 holic liquor to keep himself warm, and the extreme danger 

 of such a course. Members of exploring parties in cold 

 climates have lost their lives by ignorance of, or disobedi- 

 ence to, this well-known rule. In the unconsciousness of 

 drunken sleep the full narcotic effects of alcohol are seen. 

 And it is very significant that the word by which we 

 designate this condition (a word that was applied long 

 generations before there was any systematic study as to 

 how drugs affect the body), this word intoxication 

 means poisoning, 



Alcohol formerly regarded as a Stimulant. Until late 

 years nearly all authorities considered alcohol a stimulant. 

 Its effects were apparently such as to rouse the organs of 

 the body to a higher degree of activity. But recent experi- 

 ments have shown that this effect, which is of a very short 

 duration, is not its real characteristic action. In from ten to 

 twenty minutes this preliminary excitement begins to abate, 

 and is followed by a period of diminished activity. Its 

 essential action is that of a narcotic or paralyzing agent. 



Alcohol as a Narcotic. Many of the later writers who 

 have investigated the subject say that alcohol is not a 



