264 A STUDY IN HEREDITY 



drunkenness is, however, a personal equation. But if a man be 

 not temperately inclined, he ingests alcoholic fluid until the 

 desired effect is produced, and, even if he be so inclined, the 

 standard of his temperance is often guaged at a little less than his 

 power of resisting the toxic effect of the alcohol element. But for 

 the real toper, be it on beer, whisky, or wine, the goal of 

 intoxication is eventually reached ; and even were spirits abolished, 

 as our contemporary suggests, the goal would still be reached on 

 the principle of the old wayside sign, " Drunk for a penny, dead 

 drunk for twopence." While giving our contemporary every 

 credit for desiring abstract temperance, it seems that a theory 

 according to which any man would rarely be drunk if limited to 

 wine and beer is not without risk. It is practically certain that 

 not many men in England will get delirium tremens during the 

 first year of the new century from drinking champagne, but we 

 should be devoutly thankful if the man in the street would drink 

 less beer than he did during the last year of the old century." 

 (British Medical Journal, p. 1733, isth December 1900). 



