THE DEA TH-RA TE FROM ALCOHOL 7 1 



soldier dying of shell or bullet wounds, or even 

 of privation or enteric fever, would dream of 

 attributing his non-recovery to intemperance ? It 

 is probable, therefore, that the highest estimates, 

 based on medical returns, fall short of the actual 

 truth. But even if only 120,000 deaths result 

 annually, directly or indirectly, from the use of 

 alcohol, this would represent about one-sixth of 

 the total mortality from all causes — a greater 

 proportion than results from any single disease. 

 It is, therefore, abundantly manifest that if alcohol, 

 this great agent of elimination, be selective in its 

 action, it must be a most potent cause of evolution. 



Let us, then, endeavour to discover whether 

 alcohol eliminates a particular type of individual. 

 If it does, let us try to trace the course of the 

 resulting evolution. 



