MEDICINAL ACTION. 137 



breathing an infectious air, Avhich stings the eyes, irritates 

 the nostrils, and produces suffocation. This occurs three 

 times : in a subsequent stage the tobacco-dust flies about 

 like flour in a mill. 



"Now the liabihty to injury from these various in- 

 fluences is in proportion to the conditions." 



In other words, they increase in intensity until 

 they reach their maximum in the grinding of the 

 leaf to powder. 



" We must distinguish the effects of tobacco into primi- 

 tive and consecutive: — 1st. The neighbourhood of a 

 tobacco-factory is known by a smell which increases as we 

 approach : in the interior we do not remark that continual 

 sneezing which Ramazzini mentions as evident even in 

 the horses ; but if we remain any time, we get headache, 

 we feel sick, and sometimes a diarrhoea comes on. The 

 latter, which is more frequent in the women, is salutary, 

 and seems to be a spontaneous eftort of nature to ehminate 

 certain substances which have penetrated the organism. 

 Many workmen cannot overcome these symptoms, and are 

 forced to give up the employment. Those who become 

 acclimatised forget their inconveniences. Careless of all 

 precaution, they eat in the factory without washing their 

 hands ; and as though the tobacco did not penetrate them 

 sufficiently, they smoke and chew tobacco. Meanwhile 

 the slow action of the tobacco, though imperceptible, does 

 not cease : it ultimately produces in them a deep change. 

 It consists, says M. Melier, in the peculiar alteration of 

 their complexion : it is not a simple loss of colour, an 

 ordinary paleness — it is a gray aspect somewhat dull — a 

 sort of compound of chlorosis and certain cachexias. Their 



