128 TOBACCO : ITS HISTORY. 



hemorrhage, and, according to Haller;, even 

 squinting. 



The habit, when acquired, is safe from these 

 perils, for the susceptibihty of the mucous 

 membrane is deadened ; nevertheless the re- 

 peated stimulations of the membrane act upon 

 its structure, and ultimately thicken and harden 

 it throughout. The peculiar titillation which 

 snuff- takers enjoy can be procured only by aug- 

 menting the dose of snuff: their noses, their upper 

 lip, being continually rubbed, are hypertrophied, 

 as the doctors call it — that is, increased in dimen- 

 sions: the black mucosities which ooze from 

 their nostrils, the odour of their breath and of 

 their garments, often disgust us with their persons, 

 especially when old age and want of cleanliness 

 aggravate these inconveniences. Their sense of 

 smell is deteriorated and weakened by the ex- 

 haustion of excitability in the olfactory, which 

 finds it very difficult to perform its function 

 through the blackish mass of its carpet* 



* Levy, * Traite d'Hygiene,' ii. 263. Paris, 1857. 



