14 PHYSIOLOGY AND TEMPERANCE. 



regularity with which we attend to its many needs, and the 

 judgment we exercise in taking into the system only that 

 which is pure and wholesome, and avoiding those things 

 which tend to irritate, to injure and to destroy. 



One of the most destructive agents man has brought into 

 use is ALCOHOL. Owing to its use as a beverage, it has become 

 a powerful evil. Taken into the system regularly, it becomes 

 an overpowering enemy. Alcohol may be presented in many 

 different forms.. There are a large number of intoxicating 

 beverages, each of which is supposed to possess some special 

 virtue. They are all alike seductive, and are taken for the 

 alcohol they contain Some have only a small amount of 

 alcohol in them, and are classed as mild drinks Others are 

 nearly one-half alcohol, and are called strong drinks. No 

 matter in what form it is taken, we will find in the succeeding 

 chapters of this book, that every tissue and every organ of the 

 body is influenced bv its use. We are also convinced that 

 further evidence will not be needed to show that perfect 

 health cannot be hoped for when alcohol is taken in ever so 

 small a quantity. 



TOBACCO, though "the lesser evil of the two," is, perhaps, 

 more universally used than alcohol ; and is, doubtless, respon- 

 sible for many a headache, a deranged stomach, a weak heart, 

 or a stunted body. Like alcohol, it is also presented in many 

 different forms. Some draw it into the nose, as snuff; others 

 take it into the mouth, to chew; while others, again, smoke it, 

 either in the form of a cigarette, a cigar, or in a pipe. Taken 

 in any form, it is more or less distasteful to those about us 

 who do not use it, while some of the modes of taking tobacco 

 deserve strong condemnation. 



The evil effects of OPIUM are not to be less dreaded than 

 those of alcohol. We shall find that, while it is a useful drug 

 in the hands of a careful physician, it is too powerful c, one to 

 be used indifferently. The opium eater is as much to be 

 pitied as the drunkard. 



