FOODS AND DIETARIES 



349 



affect an animal placed within it. The illustration here given 

 shows its effect upon a fish, one of the vertebrate animals. Nico- 

 tine in a pure form is 

 so powerful a poison 

 that two or three 

 drops would be suf- 

 ficient to cause the 

 death of a man by its 

 action upon the nerv- 

 ous system, especially 

 the nerves controlling 

 the beating of the 

 heart. This action is 

 well known among boys 

 training for athletic 

 contest. The heart is 

 affected; boys become 

 " short-winded" as a 

 result of the action on 

 the heart. It has been 

 demonstrated that tobacco has, too, an important effect on 

 muscular development. The stunted appearance of the young 

 smoker is well known. 



Experiment (by Davison) to show how tobacco affects 

 the nervous system. The nicotine, caught in the 

 water by passing through it the smoke from six 

 cigarettes, was sufficient to kill the fish in the jar. 



Problem XLIV. A study of some medical frauds, 

 ratory Manual, Prob. XLIY.} 



(Ldbo- 



Use and Abuse of Drugs. The American people are addicted 

 to the use of drugs and, especially, patent medicines. A glance at 

 the street car advertisements shows this. Most of the medicines 

 advertised contain alcohol in greater quantity than beer or wine, 

 and nearly all of them have opium, morphine, or cocaine in their 

 composition. Dr. George D. Haggard of Minneapolis has shown 

 by many analyses that a large number of the so-called " malts," 

 " malt extracts/' and " tonics," including several of the best known 

 and most advertised on the market, are simply disguised beers 

 and, frequently, very poor beers at that. These drugs, in addition 

 to being harmful, affect the person using them in such a manner 



