ARMY MEDICAL LIBRARY FOUNDED 1836 WASHINGTON, D.C. AN INQUIRY INTO TUB EFFECTS OF ARDENT SPIRITS * UPON THE HUMAN BODY AND MIND, WITH J,N ACCOUNT OF THE MEANS OF PREVENTING ■ *t AND OF TUB '. REMEDIES FOR CXJR1XG THEM BY BENJAMIN RUSH, M. D. Professor of Medicine in the University of Pennsylvania. XSZ SEVEXTB. EDITION .WITH ADDi'lVS-S.. JVE W-BRUNSWICR: tf«I3T£*P ASD rrBUlSUED BT 1EW1S S£AB£-. 1813. U) ( /**** ^^J;i/ .<-: *x. W\ >V-.^"«Jv^r CONTENTS. ^^— PART I. Of the effects of ardent spirits, as they appear in a fit of drunkenness, Fage a Of the chronic effects of their habitual use upon the body, - 8 Of their effects upon the mind, - - j* Of their effects upon property, - - ' ' Vo Arguments in favour of their use answered, - }* Cases in which a small quantity of them may be taken with safety, ib. PART II. Substitutes for ardent 'spirits, • - • 13 Cautions and directions to sundry classes of people, with respect to the use of ardent spirits, - - - 16 Means of preventing their general use suggested to civil and ecclesiastical bodies of men, - - • 38 PART III. Remedies for a fit of drunkenness, - - - 2S "Remedies for preventing the pernicious effects of the habitual and intemperate use of ardent »pirit% - -24 AN INQUIRY, 6jc. PART I. I?7 ardent spirits, I mean those liquors only which are obtained by distillation iVoin fermented substances of any kind. To their effects upon the bodies and minds of men, the following in- quiry shall be exclusively confined. Fermented liquors contain so little spirit, and that so inti- mately combined with other matters, that they can seldom be drunken in sufficient quantities to produce intoxication, and its subsequent effects, without exciting a disrelish to their taste, or pain, from Ci?ir distending the stomach. They are moreover, when taken in a moderate quantity, generally innocent, and often have a friendly in- fluence noon health and life. The effects of ardent spirits divide themselves into such as are of a prompt, and such as are of a chronic nature. The former discover themselves in drunkenness, and the latter in a numerous train of diseases and vices of the body and mind. I. I shall begin by briefly describing their prompt, or immediate effects, in a lit of drunken- ness. This odious disease (for by that name it should be called) appears with more or less of the follow- ing symptoms, and most commonly in the order in which I shall enumerate them. B 6 OV THT. LFFECTS op auuent srini«s. 1. Unusu-d garrulity. 2. Unusual silence. 3. Cnptiousurss, and a disposition to quarrel. 4. Uncommon good humour, and an insipid simpering, or laugh. 5. Profane swearing, and cursing. 7. A disclosure of their own, or other people's secrets. 8. A rude disposition to tell those persons in company whom they know, their faults. 9. Certain immodest actions. T am sorry to say, this sign of the first stage of drunkenness, sometimes appears in women, who, when sober, are uniformly remarkable for chaste and decent manners. 10. A dipping of words. It. Fighting; a black eye, or a swelled nose, often mark this grade ef drunkenness. 12. Certain extravagant acts which indicate a temporary fit of mad- ness. These are singing, h:>I!ooing, roaring, imitating the noises of brute animals, jumping, tearing off clothes, dancing naked, breaking glasses and china, and dashing other -articles of household furniture upon the ground, or floor. Alter a while the paroxysm of drunk- enness is complete!}- formed. The face now h comes flushed, the eyes project, and are somewhat watery, winking is less frequent than is natural; the under lip is protruded,—the head inclines a little to one shoulder ;—the jaw falls ;—belchings and hiccup takes place ;— the limbs totter;—the whole body staggers:—The unfortunate sub- ject of this history next falls on his seat,—he looks around him with a vacant countenance, and mutters inarticulate sounds to himself;— he attempts to rise and walk. In this attempt, he falls upon his side, from which he gradually turns upon his back. He now closes his ej es, and falls into, a profound sleep, frequently attended with snoring, and profuse sweats, and sometimes with such a relaxation of the iiium les which confine the bladder and the lower bowels as to produce a sy r:;p- tom which delicacy forbids me to mention. In this condition, he of- ten lies from ten, twelve, and twenty-four hours, to two, three, four, and five days, an object of pity and disgust to his family and friends. His recovery Torn this fit of intoxication, is marked with several pe- culiar appearances. He opens his eyes, and closes them again ;—he gp-ip* aid stretches his limbs.—he then coughs and pukes,—his voice is hoarse,—he rises with difficulty, and staggers to a chair ; his eyes resemble balls of fire,—his hands tremble,—he loathes the sight of fool] ;—he calls for a glass of spirits to compose his stomach :—now and the-j he emits a deep fetched sigh, or groan, from a transient twinge of conscience, but he more frequently scolds, and curses every thing around lvm. Tn this state of languor and stupidity, he remains for two or three davs before he is able to resume his former habits of bu-'mess and conversation. Pythagoras «e are told maintained that the sou!*' of men after death, expiated the crimes com- mitted by them in this world, by animating cer- tain ht ute anir.ials ; and that I he souls of those ani- ma4g is their turns, entered into men, and carried OS THE EFFECTS OF ABDENT SPIHITS. 7 with them all their peculiar qualities and vices. This doctrine of one of the wisest and best of the Greek Philosophers, was probably intended only to convey a lively idea of the changes which are induced in the body and mind of man by a fit of drunkenness. In folly, it causes him to resemble a calf,—in stupidity, an ass,—in roaring, a mad bull,—in quarrelling, and fighting, a dog,—-in cru- elly, a tyger,—in fetor, a skunk,—in filthiness, a hog,—and in obscenity, a he-goat. It belongs to the history of drunkenness to re- mark that, its paroxysms occur, like the parox- ysms of many diseases, at certain periods, and af- ter longer or shorter intervals. They often be- gin with annual, and gradually increase in their frequency, until they appear in quarterly, month- ly, weekly, and quotidian or daily periods. Fi- nally they afford scarcely any marks of remission either during the day or the night. There was a citizen of Philadelphia many years ago in whom drunkenness appeared in this protracted form. In speaking of hiiu to one of his neighbours, I said, •• do;vs he not sometimes get drunk ?" •*• You mean," said his neighbour, ♦• is he not sometimes sober?" It is further remarkable, that drunkenness re- sembles certain hereditary, family, and contagious diseases. I have once known it to descend from a father to four out of live of his children. I have seeu three, and otiee four, brothers who were born of sober ancestors, affected by it, and I bave heard of its spreading through a whole family composed of members not originally related to each other. These faets are important, and should not be overlooked by parents, in deciding upon the matrimonial connexions of their children. Let us next attend to the chronic effects of ar- 8 its THE EFFECTS OF AHDF.X 1 SPIIUTs. dent spirits upon the body and mind. In the body, they dispose to every form of acute disease ; they moreover excite fevers in persons predispos- ed to them, from other causes. This has been remarked in all the yellow fevers which have vi- sited the cities of the United States. Hard drink- ers seldom escape, and rarely recover from them. The following diseases are the usual consequen- ces of the habitual use of ardent spirits, viz. 1. A decay of apetite, sickness at stomach, and a puking of bile or a discharge of a frothy ai d viscid phlegm by hawking, in the morn- ing. 2. Obstructions of the liver. The fable of Prometheus, on whose liver a vulture was said to prey constantly, as a punishment for his stealing fire from heaven, was intended to illustrate the painful effects of ardent spirits upon that organ of the body. 3. Jaundice and dropsy of the belly and limbs, and finally of every cavity in the body. A swelling in tho feet aud legs is so characteristic a mark of habits of intemperance, that the merchants in Charleston, I have been told, cease to trust the planters of South Carolina, as soon as they perceive it. They very naturally conclude industry and vir- tue to be extinct in that man in whom that symptom of disease has been produced by the intemperate use of distilled spirits. 4. Hoarseness, and a husky cough, which often terminate in con- sumpi'.oi', and sometimes in an acute and fatal disease of the lungs. 5. Diubetos, that is, a frequent and weakening discharge of pale, or sweetish urine. 6. Redness, and eruptions on different parts of the body. They generally h \v:.i on the nose, and after gradually extending all o. .•<• the face, snmetinv..* descend to the limbs in the form of leprosy. They have been called "Kum-buds," when they appear in the fact. In persons who have occasionally survived these effects of ardent spirits on the skin, the face after a while becomes bloated, and its redness is succeeded by a deathlike paleness. Thus the same fire which pro- duces a rtd colour in iron, when urged to a mure intense degree, pi ounces what has beeu caiied a « I.Le he;.t. 7. A fetid breath composed of every tiling that is offensive in pu- trid animal matter. 8. Frequent and disgusting belcliings. Dr. If alter relates the case of a notorious drunkard, having Ik-cii suddenly desti < ■ I in conse- quence of the vapour uncharged from his stomach by ., aiiiiu-. acci- dentally taking fire by comii.g hi umli.tt wkh tlu; Hunu of u civile 9. Epilepsy. 10. Gout in all its various forms of swelled limbs, cu'.ick, palsey, and apoplexy. Lastly* 11. Mildness. The late Dr. W.iters, while he acted as house pupil and apothecary of Vcn.isvlv.u.ia Ho?;>ii.l, assured n.e, that in one third of the patients confined by this telvib'.e diseuac i'. had been induced by ardent spirits. OX THF. EFFECTS OF AHD.'-.VT ol'IKITS. J Most of the diseases which have been enumer- ated are of a mortal nature. They are most cer- tainly induced, and terminate more speedily in death, when spirits are taken in such quantities, and at such times, as to produce frequent intoxi- cation ; but it may serve to remove an error with which some intemperate people console them- selves, to remark, that ardent spirits often bring on fatal diseases without producing drunkenness. 1 have known many persons destroyed by them who were never completely intoxicated during the whole course of their lives. The solitary instan- ces of longevity which arc now and then met with in hard drinkers, no more disprove the deadly ef- fects of ardent spirits, than the solitary instances of recoveries from apparent death by drowning, prove that there is no danger to life from a hu- man body lying an hour or two under water. The body after its death, from the use of dis- tilled spirits, exhibits by dissection certain appear- ances which are of a peculiar nature. The fibres of the stomach and bowels are contracted;—ab- scessess,—gangrene,—and schirri arc found in the viscera.—The bronchial vessels are contracted,— the blood vessels and tendons in many parts of the body are more or less ossified, and even the hair of the head possesses a crispness which renders it less valuable to wig-makers than the hair of sober people. Not less destructive are the effects of ardent spirits upon the human mind. They impair the memory, debilitate the understanding, and pervert the moral faculties. It was probably from ob- serving these effects of intemperance in drinking, upon the mind, that a law was formerly passed in S;»ain which excluded drunkards from being wit- nesses in a court of justice. But the demoralize b 2 Ill UN THE UU'l.cTS OT AHUi N'T MUHITS. ing effects of distilled spirits do not slop here. They produce not only falsi hood, but fraud, theft, uncleanlincss and murder. Like the demoniac mentioned in the New Testament, their name is "legion," for they convey into the soul, a host of viees and crimes. A more affecting spectacle cannot be exhibited than a person into whom this infernal spirit, ge- nerated by habits of intemperance, has entered. It is more or less affecting according to the sta- tion the person fills in a family, or in society, who is possessed by it. Is he a husband ? How deep the anguish which rends the bosom of his wife! Is she a wife ? Who can measure the shame and aversion which she excites in her husband ? Is he the father, or is she the mother of a family of children ? See their averted looks from their pa- rent, and their blushing looks at each other ! Is he a magistrate ? or has he been chosen to fill a high and respectable station in the councils of his country? What humiliating fears of corruption in the administration of the laws, and of the sub- version of public order and happiness, appear in the countenances of all who see him ! Is he a minister of the gospel?—Here language fails me.—If angels weep—it is at such a sight. In pointing out the evils produced by ardent spirits, ht us not pass by their effects upon the estates of the persons who are addicted to them. Are they inhabitants of cities?—Behold! their houses stripped gradually of their furniture, and pawned, or sold by a constable, to pay tavern debt. See ! their names upon record in the dock- ets of every court, and whole pages of newspapers filled with advertisements of their estates for pub- lie sale. Are they inhabitants of country places? Behold ! their houses with shattered windows,— their barns with leaky roofs,—their gardens over- O.V TITfc EFFECTS OF AIUtT;>T SPIKITS. It run with weeds,—their fields with broken fences, their hogs without yokes, their sheep without wool,—their eattle and horses without fat,—and their children filthy and half clad, without man- ners, principles, antl n.orals. This picture of ag- ricultural wretchedness is seldom of long duration. The farms and property thus neglected, and de- preciated, are seized and sold for the benefit of a group of creditors. The children that were born with the prospect of inheriting them, are bound out to service in the neighbourhood ; while their parents, the unworthy authors of their misfor- tunes, ramble into new and distant settlements, alternately fed on their way by the hand of chari- ty, or a little casual labour. Thus we see poverty and misery, crimes and in- famy, diseases and death, are all the natural and usual consequences of the intemperate use of ar- dent spirits. I have classed death among the consequences of hard drinking. But it is not death from the immediate hand of the Deity, nor from any of the instruments of it which were created by him. It is death from si icide. Yes—thou poor degrad- ed creature, who art daily lifting the poisoned bowl to thy lips—cease to avoid the unhallowed ground in which the self-murderer is interred, and wonder no longer that the sun should shine, and the rain fall, and the grass look green upon his grave. Thou art perpetrating gradually, by the use of ardent spirits, what he has effected sudden- ly by opium—or a halter. Considering how many circumstances from surprise, or derangement, may palliate his guilt, or that (unlike yours) it was not preceded and accompanied by any other crime, it is probable his condemnation will be less than yours at the day of judgment. LO OK THR EFFKCTS OF AnttENT Sl-i illTS. I shall now take notice of the occasions and circumstances which are supposed to reader the use of ardent spirits necessary, and endeavour to shew that the arguments in favour of their use in such cases are founded in error, and that in each of them, ardent spirits instead of affording strength to the body, increase the evils they arc intended to relieve. 1. They are said to be necessary in very cold weather. This is far from being true ; for the temporal-) warmth they produce, is al- ways succeeded by a greater disposition in the body to be affected by cold. Warm dresses, a plentiful meal just before exposure to the cold, and eating occasionally a little gingerbread, or any other cordial food, is a much more durable method of preserving the heat of the body in cold weather. 2. They are said to be necessary in very warm weather. Experi- ence proves that they increase, instead of lessening the effects of heat upon the body and thereby dispose to diseases of all kinds. "Even in the warm climate of the West ludies Dr. Bell asserts this to he true. " Rum (says this author) whether used habitually, moderately, or in excessive quantities in the West-Indies, always diminishes the strength of the body, and renders men more susceptible of disease, and unfit for any service in which vigour or activity is required "* As well might we throw oil into a house, the roof of which was on fire, in or- der to prevent the flames from extending to its inside, as pour ardent spirits into the stomach, to lessen the effects of a hot sun upon the skin. 3. Nor do ardent spirits lessen the effects of htrd labour upon the body. Look at the horse ; with every muscle of his body swelled from morning till night in the plough, or a team, does he make signs for a draught of toddy, or a glass of spirits to enable him to cleave the ground, or to climb a hill?—No—he requires nothing but cool water and substantial food. There is no nourishment in ardent spirits. The strength they produce in labour is of a transient nature, and is always followed by a sense of weakness and fatigue. But are there no conditions of the human body in which ardents spirits may be given ? I answer— there are. 1st. When the body has been suddenly exhausted of its strength, and a disposition to faintness has been induced. Here a few spoon- fuls, or a wine-glassful of spirits, with or without water, mav be ad- ministered with safety and advantage. In this case we comply strict- ly with the advice of Solomon, who restricts the use of " strong drink" anly " to hiin who is ready to perish."—2dly. When the body hat * Inqidry into 1he revses -which produce, and the means of pre- venting diseases among British officers, soldiers and others in the West-Indies. OH TIIE EFFECTS OF ABnEJTT SPIRITS. 13 been cxposei^for a long time to wet weather, more especially, if it be combined with cold. Here a moderate quantity of spirits is not only safe, but highly proper to obviate debility, and to prevent a fe- ver. They will more certainly have those salutary effects, if the feet are at the same time bathed with them, or a half pint of them poured into the shoes or boots. These I believe are the only two ca- ses in which distilled spirits are useful or necessary to persons in health. PART II. Bur it may be said, if we reject spirits from be- ing a part of our drinks, what liquors shall we substitute in their room? I answer in the first place, 1. Simple Water. I have known many instances of persons who have follou ed the most laborious emplo_\ ments for many years, in the open air, and in warm and cold weather, who never drank any thing but water, and enjoyed uninterrupted good health. Dr. .Moselv, who resided many years in the West Iudes, confirms this rtxnark. "I aver, (says the Doctor) from my own knowledge and custom, as well as the custom and observations of many other people, that those who drink nothing hut water, or make it their principal drink, are but little affected by the climate, and can undergo the greatest fatigue without inconvenience, and are never subject to troublesome or dan- gerous diseases." Persons who are unable to relish this simple beverage of nature, may think some one, or of all the following liquors in preference to ardent spi- rits. 2. Cyder. This excellent liquor contains a small quantity of spirit, but so diluted, and blunted by being combined with a large quantity of saccharine matter, and water, as to be perfectly wholesome. It sometimes disagrees with persons subject to the rheumatism, but it may be made inoffensive to such people, by extinguishing a red hot iron in it, or by mixing it with water. It is to be lamented that the Late frosts in the spring so often deprive us of the fruit which affords this liquor. The effects of these frosts have been in some measure obviated by giving an orchard a north west exposure, so as to check too early vegetation, and by kindling two or three large fires of brush, or straw, to the windward of the orchard, the evening before we ex- pect a ninht of frost. This hist expedient has in many instanecs pre- served the fruit of an orchard to the great joy and emolument of the ingenious husbandman. a>. Malt lkivoiis. The grain from which these liquors are ob- tained, is not li.thle, like the apple, to he affected by frost, and there- fore thea can be procured, :>t all times, and at a moderate price. Tliev contain a good deal of nourishment; hence we find many of flic poor people in t'r. Ht-UVitr.'m endure hard h'.bour with no ot!i.: 14 ON THE EFFECTS OF AHDEXT SPIRITS. food than a quart or three pints of beer, with a few pounds of bread in a day. As it will be difficult to prevent small heer from becoming sour in warm weather, an excellent substitute maybe made for it by- mixing bottled porter, ale, or strong heer, with an equal quantity of water; or a pleasant beer may be made by adding to a bottle of por- ter, ten quarts of water, and a pound of brown sugar or a pint of molasses Vfter they have been w ell mixed, pour the liquor into bot- tles and place them, loosely corked, in a cool cellar. In two or three days, it will he tit for use." A spoonful of gin-er added to the mix- ture, renders it more lively, and agreeable to the taste. 3. Wines. These fermented liquors are composed of the same in- gredients as cyder, and are both cordial and nourishing. The peas- ants of France who drink them in large quantities, are a sober and healthy body of people. Unlike ardent spirits, which render the temper irritable, wines generally inspire cheerfulness and good hu- mour It is to he lamented that the grape has nol as y et been suffi- ciently cultivated in our country, to afford wine for our citizens; but many excellent substitutes may be made for it, from the native fruits of i 11 the states. II" two barrels of cyder fresh from the press, are boiled into one, and afterwards fermented, and kept for two oi three years in a dry cellar, it affords a liquor which, according to the quali- ty of the apple from which the cyder is made, has thetaste of Mal- aga, or Rhenish wine. It affords when mixed with water, a most agreeable drink in summer. 1 have taken the liberty of calling it Pomona Wine. There is another method of making a pleasant wine from the apple, by adding four and twenty gallons of new cyder to three gallons of syrrup made from the expressed juice of sweet ap- ples. When thoroughly fermented, and kept for a lew years, it be- comes fit for use. The blackberry of our fields, and the raspberry, and currant of our gardens, afford likewise an agreeable and v hole- some wine, when pressed, and mixed with certain proportions of su- gar and water, and a little spirit, to counteract the disposition to an excessive fermentation. It is no objection to these cheap and home- made wines, that they are unfit for use until they are two or throe years old. The foreign wines in common use in our country, require not only a much longer time to bring them to perfection, but to pre- vent their being disagreeable even to the taste. 4. .Molasses and ll'aler, also Vinegar and Water sweetened with sugar, or molasses, form an agreeable drink in warm weather. It is pleasant and cooling, and tends to keep up those gentle anil uniform i\* eats on w hich health and Ufe often depend. Vinegar and water con- stituted the only drink of the soldiers of the Roman republic, and it is well known they marched and fought in a war climate, and beneath a load of arms which weighed sixlv pounds. Boaz, a wealthy farmer in Palestine, we find treated las reapers with nothing but bread dip- ped in vinegar. To such persons as object to the taste of vinegar, sour milk, or buttermilk, or sweet milk diluted with water, may be given in its stead. I have known the labour of the longest and hottest days in summer supported by means of these pleasant and whole. some drinks with great firmness, and ended with scarcely a complaint of fatigue. 5. The Sugar maple affords a thin juice which has lonj? be<-n used by the farraeis in Connecticut as a tool, aud refreshing drink in the OX THB EFFECTS OF ARBF.XT SPTBITS. IS time of harvest. The settlers in the Western counties of the middle states will do well to let a few of the trees which yield this pleasant juice, remain in all their fields. They may prove the means not only of saving their children and grand children manv hundred pounds, but of saving (heir bodies from disease and death, and their souls from misery beyond the grave. 6. Co/fee possesses agreeable and exhilarating qualities, and might be used with great advantage to obviate the painful effects of heat, cold and fatigue upon the body. 1 once knew a country physician who mad" it a practice to drink a pint of strong coffee previously to his taking a long or cold ride. U was more cordial to him than spirits, in any of the forms in which they are commonly used. The use of the cold bath in the morning, and of the warm bath in the evening, are happily cal- culi.: rd to strengthen the body the former part of the day. and to restore it in the latter, from the languor and fatigue which are induced by heat and labour. Let it not be said ardent spirits have become necessary from habit in harvest, and in other sea- son-> of uncommon and arduous labour. The hab- it is a bad one, and may be easilv broken. Let but half a dozen farmers in a neighbourhood com- bine to allow higher wages to their labourers than are common, ami a sufficient quantity of any of the pleasant and wholesome liquors I have recom- mended, and they may soon, by their example, ab dish the practice of giving them spirits. In a little while they will be delighted with the good effects of their association. Their grain,, and hay will be gathered into their barns in less time, and in a better condition than formerly, and of course at a less expense, and an hundred disagreeable scenes from sickness, contention and accidents will be avoided, all of which follow in a greater or less degree the use of ardent spirits. Nearly all diseases have their predisposing causes. The same thing may be said of the in- • temperate use of distilled spirits. It will, there- fore, be useful to point out the different employ- IC «N TBE EFF1CTS OF ABDEKT SPIRITS. ments, situations, and conditions of the body and mind which predispose to the love of those liquors, and to accompany them with directions to prevent persons being ignorantly and undesignedly seduc- ed into the habitual and destructive use of them. 1. Labourers bear with great difficulty, long intervals between their meals To enable them to support theWaste of their strength, their stomachs should be constantly, but moderately stimulated by aliment, and this is best done by their eating four or five times in a day, during the seasons of great bodily exertion. The food at this time should be solid, consisting chiefly of salted meat. The vegetables used with it should possess some activity, or they should be made savoury by a mixture of spices. Onions and garlick are of a most cordial nature. They composed a part of the diet which enabled the Israelite- to en- dure in a warm climate, the heavy tasks imposed upon them bv their Egyptian masters, and they were eaten, Horace and Virgil tills us, by the Roman farmers, to repair the waste of their strength, b\ the toils of harvest. There are likewise certain sweet substances which support the body under the pressure of labour The negroes in the West-Indies become strong, and even f..t by drinking the .nice of the sugar cane in the season of grinding it The Jewish soldiers were in- vigorated by occasionally eating raisins and fi'/s \ bread composed of wheat flower, molasses and ginger (oommoalv called gingerbread) taken in small quantities during the day, is happily calculated to obvi- ate the debility induced upon the body bv constant labour. All these substances, whether of an animal or vegetable nature, lessen the de- sire, as well as the necessity for cordial drinks, and impart equable, and durable strength, to every part of the system 2. Valetudinarians, espccialh those who are afflicted with diseases of the stomach and bowels, are very apt to seek r< lief from ardent spir- its. Let such people be cautious how they make use of this dangerous re- medy. I have know n many men and women of excellent characters and principles, who have been betrayed bv <">ocaMonal doses of gin and bran- dv, into a love of those liquors, and ha' "afterwards fallen sacrifices to their fatal effects The different pr cpa<-at*ons of opium are much more safe and efficacious than distilled cordi I; of any kind, in flatulent or spas- modic aff'ctions of the stomach and bowels. So great is the danger of contracting a love for distilled liquors by accustoming the stomach to their stimulus; that as few medicines as possible should be gi\ei In spirituous vehicles, in chronic disorders. A physician of great eminence and uncommon worth, who died towards the close of the last cen- tury, in London, in taking leave of a young physi- cian of this city, who had finished his studies under his patronage, impressed this caution wills pecu- liar force u:>on him, and lamented at the same time in pathetic terms, that he had innocently OST THE EFIIXTS OF ARI)i:VT SPIRITS. 1 * made many sots by prescribing brandy and water in stomach complaints. It is difficult to tell how many persons have been destroyed by those phy- sicians who have adopted Dr. Brown's indiscrim- inate practice in the use of stimulating remedies, the most popular of which is ardent spirits, but it is well known, several of them have died of in- temperance in this city, since the year 1790. They were probably led to it, by drinking brandy and water to relieve themselves from the frequent attacks of debility and indisposition to which the labours of a physician expose him, and for which rest, fasting, a gentle purge, or weak diluting drinks would have been more safe and more cer- tain cures. None of these remarks are intended to preclude the use of spirits in the low state of short, or what are called acute diseases, for in such eases, they produce their effects too soon, to create an habitual desire for them. t 3. Some people, from living.in countries subject to intermitting fe- vers, endeavour to fortify themselves against them, by taking two or three wine glasses of bitters, made with spirits, every day. There is great danger of contracting habits of intemperance from this prac- tice. Besides, this mode of preventing intcrmittcnts, is far from be- ing a certain one. A much better security against them, is a tea- spoonful of the Jesuits bark, taken every morning during a sickly season. If this safe and excellent medicine cannot be had, a gill or half a pint of a strong watery infusion of centaury, camomile, wormwood, or rue, mixed with a little of the calamus of our mead- ows, mav be taken every morning with nearly the same advantage as the Jesuits bark. Those persons who live in a sickly country, and cannot procure any of the preventatives of autumnal fevers, which have been mentioned, should avoid the morning and evening air ;—should kindle fires in their houses, on damp days, and in cool evenings, through- out the whole summer, and put on winter clothes, about the first week in September. The last part of these directions, applies only to the inhabitants of the middle states. 4. Men who follow professions, which require constant exercise of the faculties of their minds, are very apt to seek relief, by the use of ardent spirits, from the fatigue which succeeds great mental e\er« lions. To such persons, it may be a discovery to know, that tec is a much bett t remedy for that purpose By its grateful and gentle sti- mulus, it removes tatigue, restores the oxcitement of the miad, an* C 13 OX THF. F.rFFlTs OF AniilN r srilMTfi. invigorates the whole system. I am no advocate for the excessive use of tea. When taken too strong, it is hurtful, especially to the fei .ale constitution; but when taken of a moderate degree of strength, and in moderate quantities, with sugar and cream, or milk, I believe it is in general innoxious, and at all times to be prcleritd to urdent spi- rits, as a cordial for studious men. The late Anthony Benczet, one of the most la- borious schoolmasters I ever knew, informed me, he had been prevented from the love of spirit .nous liquors, by acquiring a love for lea in early Hie. Three or four cups, taken in an afternoon, e.a i i- Qd off the fatigue of a whole day's labour in his school. This worthy man lived to be seventy-one years of age, and died of an acute disease, with the full exercise of all the faculties of his mind. But the use of tea, counteracts a desire for distill- ed spirits, during great bodily, as well as mental exertions. Of this Captaiu Forest has furnished us with a recent, and remarkable proof in his his- tory of a voyage from Calcutta, to the Marqui Archipelago. " I have always observed, (says this ingenious mariner) when sailors drink lea, it weans them from the thoughts of drinking strong liquors, and pernicious grog; and with this, they are soon contented. Not so with whatever will intoxicate, be it what it will. This has always been my remark ! I therefore, always encourage it, without their knowing why." 5 Women have sometimes been led to seek relief from what is called breeding sickness, by the use of ardent spirits. A little gin- gerbread, orbuscuit, taken occasionally, so as to prevent the stomach being empty, is a much better remedy for that disease. 6. Persons under the pressure of debt, disappointments in worldly pursuits, and guilt, have sometimes sought to drown their sorrows in strong drink. The only radical cure for those evils, is to be found in Religion ; but where its support is rot resorted to, wine and opium should always be preferred to ardent spirits. They are far less inju- rious to the body and mind, than spirits, andthe liabitsof attachment to them, are easily broken, after time and repentance nave removed the evils they were taken to relieve. 7. The sociable and imitative nature of man, often disposes him to adopt the most odious and destructive practices from his companions. Tke French soldiers who conquered Holland, in the year 1794, OW THE EFFECTS OF AttDEKT SPIHITS. 1-J brought br.ck with them the love and use of brandy, and thereby cor- rupted the inhabitants of several of the departments of France, who had been previously distinguished for their temperate and sober man- ners. Many other facts might be mentioned, to show how important it is to avoid the company of persons addicted to the use of ardent spirits. S. Smoking and chewing tobacco, by rendering water and simple liquors insipid to the taste dispose very ieuch to the stronger stimulus of an'r - t spirits. The pricticeof smoking segars, has in every part of our coiu.trv, been more followed by a general use of brandy and water, as a common drink, more especially by that class of citizens •>>. ho have not been in the habit of drinking wine, or malt liquors*. The |f;s. therefore, tobacco is used in the above ways the better. 9. No man ever became suddenly a drunkard. It is by gradually accustoming the taste and stomach to ardent spirits in the form of grog:iu(\ tr.ddy, that men have been led to Icne them in their more destructive inisture and in list-h* simple state. Under the impression of this --ruth, were it pos- sible for me to speak, with a voice so lomi as to be heard from the river St. Croix, to the remo- test shores of the Mississippi, which bound the territory of the United Stales, I would say,— Friends and Fellow-Citizens ! avoid the habitual use of those two seducing liquors, whether ther be made with brandy, rum, gin, Jamaica spirits, vviskey, or what is called cherry bounce. It is trae, some men, by limiting the strength of those drinks, by measuring the spirits and water, have drunken them for many years, and even during a long life, without acquiring habits of intemper- ance or intoxication, but many more have been insensibly led by drinking weak toddy, and grog first at their meals, to take them for their con- slant drink, in the intervals of their meals: af- terwards to take them, of an increased strength, before breakfast in the morning, and finally to tk'^.oy themselves >>y d; inking undiluted spirits during every hour of the day and night. I am not singular in this remark. "The consequences of drinking rum and water, or iV'og as it is called, (says Dr. Mosely) is. that habit increases the de- sire of more spirit, a*;d decreases its effects; and 20 OX THE EFFECTS OF ABDE5T SPIIIITS. *M»ere are very few grog drinkers, who long sur- vive the practice of debauching with it withoutac- quiring the odious nuisance ot dram drinker's breath, and downright stupidity and impotence.'** To enforce the caution against the use of those two apparently innocent and popular liquors still further, I shall select one instance, from among many, to shew the ordinary manner, in which they beguile and destroy their votaries. A citi- zen of Philadelphia, once of a fair and sober character, drank toddy for many years, as his constant drink. From this he proceeded to drink grog. After a while, nothing would satifv him, but slings made of equal parts of rum and water, with a little sugar. From slings, he advanced to paw rum, and from common ruin, to Jamaica spi- rits. Here he rested for a few months, but at length finding even Jamaica spirits were not strong enough to warm his stomach, he made it a constant praetice to throw a table-spoonful of ground pepper into each glass of his spirits, in or- der, to use his own words, " to take off their cold- ness." He soon afterwards died a martyr to his intemperance. Ministers of the gospel of every denomination, in the United States !—aid me with all the weight you possess in society, from the dignity and use- fulness of your saeved office, to save our fellow- men from being destroyed by the great destroyer of their lives and souls. In order more success- fully to effect this purpose, permit me to suggest to you, to employ the same wise modes of instruc- tion, which you use in your attempts to prevent their destruction by other vices. You expose the evils of covetousness, in order to prevent theft; you point out the sinfulness of impure desires, in * Treatise on tropical diseases. 0> Till. ESTECTb OF .IUDI5T 31'IllITS. 2! order to prevent adultery ,* and you dissuade from anger, and malice, in order to prevent murder. In like manner, denounce by your preaching, con- versation and examples, the seducing influence of toddy and grog when you aim to prevent all the crimes and miseries, which are the offsping of strong drink. We have hitherto considered the effects of ar dent spirits upon individuals, and the means of preventing them. I shall close this head of our inquiry, by a few remarks on their effects upon the population and welfare of onr country, and the means of obtaining them. It is highly probable, not less than 1000 people die annually, from the use of ardent spirits, in the United States. Should they continue to exert this deadly influence upon our population, where will their evils terminate? This question may be answered, by asking, where are all the Indian tribes, whose numbers and arms formerly spread terror among their civilized neighbours ? I an- swer in the words of the famous Mingo Chief, " the blood of many of them flows not in the veins of any human creature." They have perished, not by pestilence, and war, but by a greater foe to human life than cither of them,—Ardent Spi- rits. The loss of-iOOO American citizens, by the yellow fever, in a single year, awakened general sympathy and terror, and called forth all the strength and ingenuity of laws, to prevent its re- currence. Why is not the same zeal manifested in protecting our citizens from the more general and consuming ravages ofdistilled spirits?—Should the customs of civilized life, preserve our nation fiom extinction, and even from an increase of •mortality, by those liquors ; they caanot prevent c3 '2-2 ON THE LFFECTS OF A HUE VI' SPIRtl • our country being governed by men. chosen by iu- tenvieratc and corrupted voters. From such le- gislators, the republic would soon be in danger. To avert this evil j—let good men of every class unite and besiege the general and state govern- ments, with petitions to limit the number of tav- erns—to impose heavy duties upon ardent spirits —to inflict a mark of disgrace, or a temporary abridgment of some civil right, upon every man, eonvicted of drunkenness ; and finally to secure the property of habitual drunkards, for the ben- efit of their families, by placing it in the hands of trustees, appointed for that purpose, by a court of justice. To aid the operations of these laws, would it not be extremely useful for the rulers of the dif- ferent denominations of Christian churches to unite and render the sale and consumption of ar- dent spirits a subject of ecclesiastical jurisdiction? The Methodists, and society of Friends, have for some time past, viewed them as contraband arti- cles to the pure laws of the gospel, and have borne many public and private testimonies, against making them the objects of commerce. Theirsuccess in this benevolent enterprise, affords ample encouragement for ail other religious so- cieties, to follow their example. PART III. We come now to the third part of this Inquiry, that is, to mention the remedies for the evils whieh are brought on by the excessive use of distilled spirits. These remedies divide themselves into two kinds, I. Such as are proper to cure a fit of drunken- ness, and OS THE EFFECTS OF ARDENT SPIRITS. 23 II. Such as are proper to prevent its recurrence, and to destroy a desire for ardent spirits. I. I am aware that the efforts of science and hu- manity, in applying their resources to the cure of a disease induced by act of vice, will meet with a cold reception from many people. But let such people remember, the subject of our remedies, are their fellow creatures, and that the miseries brought upon human nature, by its crimes, areas much the objects of divine compassion, (which we are bound to imitate) a» the dis*>esses which are brought upon men, by the crimes of other ;voole, or which they bring :i-;on f !v-iselve<, ay igm>t uoee or aeeident. Let us not then ;>assby*:<> >>'-os- trate sufferer from strong <-U-h;k, but administer to him the same relief, wv v-oi'id ; w*ord to a hi- low creature, in a si*ai'ar --'ate, JYoro an acoiden- ta! and innocent ••■-*■---'-. 1. The first thing to be done to cure* fit of dr h; ,t'l and shoulders should at the same time be elevated, so as to favour a more feeble determination of the blood to the brair. 2. The contents of the stov.ae?1 sjionM'lie discharged, b: thrusting a feather down the throat It otWi restores the patient immediately to his senses and feet. Should itfail toe\aite a prking. 3. A napkin should be wrapped round th^-he-id, and wetted for an Fiour or two with cold wau r. or cold watc- should be poured in a stream upon the head. In the latter way, I have sometimes seen it used when a bov, in the ci;.\ of Philadelphia. It was applied, by dragging the patient, when found drunk in the street, to a pump, anil pumping water upon his '<•, ad for ten or fifteen j'.inutes The pati- ent generally rose, and walked off, sober and sullen, after the use of this remedy. Other remedies, less common, but not less effec- tual for a fit of drunkenness are, 4. Plunging the whole body into cold water. A number of gentle- men who had drunken to intoxication, on board of a ship in the strer n, near Fell's point, at Palttmoie, in consequence of their reeling in a small boat, on their way to the shore, in the evening, overset it, and fell into the water Several boats from the shore harrier" to their re- lief. They were all picked up, and went home, perfectly sober to •heir families. 2* OS TQE E1TECTS OF ARBKVT SrintT>. 5. Ten-or. A number of young merchants, who had drunken to gcther, in a comptinghouse, on James river, above thirty years ago, until they were intoxicated, wt-rv earned away by a sudden rise of the river, from an immense fall of rain. They floated several miles with the current, in their little eabin, half filled with water. An isl- and in the river arrested it. When they reached the shore that say- e^ their lives, they were all sober. It is probable terror assisted in the cure of the persons who fell into the water at lJallim;>re. 6. The excitement of a fit of anger The late Dr. Withersponn, used to tell a story of a man in Scotland, who was always cured of a fit of drunkenness, by being made angry. The means chosen for that purpose, was a singular one. It was talking against religion 7. A severe whipping. This remedy acts by exciting a revulsion of the blood from the brain, to the external parts of the body. 8. Profuse sweats. By means of this evacuation, nature sometimes eureka fit of drunkenness. Their good effects are obvious in labour- ers, whom quarts of spirits taken in a day, wili seldom intoxicate, while they sweat freely. If the patient be unable to swallow warm drinks, in order to produce sweats, they may be excited by purging him in a warm bath, or wrapping his body in blankets, under which should be placed half a dozen hot bricks, or bottles filled with hot water. 9. Bleeding. This remedy should always be used, where the for- mer ones have been prescribed to no purpose, or where there is rea- son to fear from the long duration of the disease, a material injury may be done to the brain. It is hardly necessary to add, that each of the above remedies, should be regulated by the grade of drunkenness, and the greater or less degree, in which the intellects are affected in it. II. The remedies which are proper to prevent the recurrence of fits of drunkenness, and to des- troy the desire for ardent spirits, are religious, metaphysical, and medical. I shall briefly men- tion them. 1. Many hundred drunkards have been cured of their desire for ar- dent spirits, by a practical belief in the doctrines of the Christian re- ligion. Examples of the divine efficacy of Christianity for this pur- pose, have lately occurred ki many parts of the U". States. 2. A sudden sense of the guilt contracted by drunkenness, and of its punishment in afuture world. It ouce cured a gentleman in Phi- ladelphia, who in a fit of drunkenness, attempted to murder a wife -whom he loved. Upon being told of it when he was sober, he was so struck with the enormity of the crime he had nearly committed that he never tasted spirituous liquors afterwards. 3. A sudden sense of shame. Of the efficacy of this deep seated principle in the human bosom, in curing drunkenness, I shall relate three remarkable instances. QUI THE EFFECTS OP ARREST SPIRITS. SW A farmer in England, who had been many years in the practice of coming home intoxicated, from a market town, one day observed appearances of rain, while he was in market. Ilis hay was cut, and ready to be housed. To save k, he returned in haste to his farm, before he had taken his cus- tomary dose of grog. Upon coming into his house, one of his children, a boy of six years old, ran to his mother, and cried out, ** O ! mother, father is come home, and he is not drunk." The father, who heard this exclamation, was so severely re- buked by it, that he suddenly became a sober man. A noted drunkard was once followed by a fa- vourite goat, to a tavern, into which he was invit- ed by his master, and drenched with some of his liquor. The poor animal staggered home with his master, a good deal intoxicated. The next day he followed him to his aceustomed tavern. When the goat came to the door, he paused : his master made signs to him to follow him into the house. The goat stood still. An attempt was made to thrust him into the tavern. He resisted, as if struck with the recollection of what he suf- fered from being intoxicated the night before. His master was so much affected by a sense of shame in observing the conduct of his goat to be so much more rational than his own, that he ceas- ed from that time to drink spirituous liquors. A gentleman in one of the southern slates, who had nearly destroyed himself by strong drink, was remarkable for exhibiting the grossest marks of folly in his fits of intoxication. One evening, sitting in his parlour, he heard an uncommon noise in his kitchen. He went to the door, and peep- ed through the key hole, from whence he saw one of his negroes diverting his fellow servants. 26 OX THE EFFECTS OT AUBEXT SPIRITS. by mimicking his master's gestures and conversa- tion when he was drunk.—'The sight overwhelm- ed him with shai.ie and distress ai:d insiantly be- came the means of his reformation. 4. The association of the idea of ardent spirits, with a painful or disagreeable impression upon some psn-t of the body has sometiims cured the love <.I strong drink. I onee tempted a i.egro man, w ho was habitually fond of ardent spirits, to dunk some rum (which 1 placed in his way) and In which I had put a few grains of tartar erne-" tic.—The tartar sickened and puked him to such a degree, that he supposed himself to be poisoned. I was mue.h gratified by observing he could not bear the sight, nor smell of spirits, for two years after- wards. I have heard of a man, who was cured of the love of spirits, by working off a puke, by large draughts of brandy and water, and I know a gen- tleman, who, in consequence of being affected with a rheumatism, immediately after drinking some toddy, when overcome with fatigue and ex- posure to the rain, has ever since loathed that li- quor, only because it was accidentally associated in his memory with the recollection of the pain he suffered from his disease. This appeal to that operation of the human mind, which obliges it to associate ideas, acci- dentally or otherwise combined, for the cure of vice, is very ancient. If was resorted to by Mo- ses, when he compelled the children of Israel, to drink the solution of the golden calf (which they had idolized) in water. This solution, if made as it most probably was, by means of what is called hepar sulphuris, was extremely bitter, and nause- ous, and could never be recollected afterwards, without bringing into equal detestation, the sin which subjected them to the necessity of drinking it. Our knowledge of this principle of association upon the minds and conduct of men, should lead us to destroy, by means of other impressions, the influence of all those circumstances, with which the recollection and de-he of spirits are eombin- 0.V THE EFFECTS OF ARDEXT SPIHITS. 27 pd. Some men di-ins: only in the morning, some at noon, and so- le at nit;ht. Some men drink only on e. mm Kef Jay, -opse at one tavern osiy, and some oiily In one kind «:i" company. Nov, by find- in;; a. n^w .to.; j'uteicsting employment, or suhjeet o;' conv^r-v.tiou for drimka* Js at the usual times it. which tliey have been j:c-u.-tomed to drink, and byn-.stir.iniiij.': I hem by the same means fiom those p'aces and companions, which suggested to them the id' a of ardert spirits, t licit babUs of inteiLper- a>*(.' ;i,-ay be couiv-'etelv deshev «!. In the same vv >. the periodical re'tuns of appetite, and a de- sire of sleep have hen desitjyed in an hundred instances. The desire for strong drink, differs from each of them, in being of i\u artificial nature, and therefore not disposed to ret urn, after being cha»ed for a few weeks from the system. 5. The love of anient spirits has someti.nes been sia'adued, by ex- citing a counter passion in the mind. A citizen of Philadelphia, had made many unsuccessful attemnt3 to cure his wife of drunkenness. At length, despairing of her reformation, he purchased a hogshead of rum, and after tapping it, left the key in the door of the room in which it was placed, as if he had forgotten it. His design was to give his wife an opportunity of drinking herself to death. She suspected this to be his motive, in what he h;».(" done, and suddenly left off drink- ing. Resentment here became, the antidote to intemperance. 6. A diet consisting wholly of vegetables cured a physician in Ma- ryland, of drunkenness, probably by lessening that thirst, which is always more or less excited by animal food 7. Blisters to the ankles, which were followed by an unusual de- gree of inflammation, once suspended the. love of ardent spirits, for one month, in a lady in this city The degrees of her intern iterance, may be conceived of, when I add, that her grocer's account for brandy alone, amounted annually, to one hundred pounds, Pennsyl- vania currency, for several years. 8. A violent attack of an acute disease, has sometimes destroyed a habit of drinking distilled liquors. I attended a notorious drunkard, in the yellow fever, in th> year 1798, who recovered with the loss of his relish for spirits, which has, I believe, continued ever since 9. A. salivation has latelv purformrd a cure of drunkeni.ess in a person in Virginia. The i ew disease excited in the mouth and throat, ■while it rendered the action of the smallest quantity of spirits upon them, painful, was happily calculated to destroy the disease in the stomach which prompts to drinking, as well as to -ender the recol- lection ol then* disagreeable, by the laws of association formerly mentioned. 2$ ON THE EFFECTS OF AHRENT SPTIlilN. 10. I have known an oath taken before a magistrate, to ill ink 4o more spirits, produce a perfect cure of drunkenness. It is M)me times cured in this way in Ireland. Persons who take oaths for this pur- pose, are called affidavit men. 11. An advantage would probably arise from frequent representa- tions being made to drunkards, not only of the ,certair.ty, but of the suddenness of death, from habits of intemperarce I have heard of two persons being cured of the love of ardent spirits, by seeing death suddenly induced by fits of intoxication ; in the one case in a stranger and in the other, in an intimate friend. . 12. It has been said, that the disuse of spirits should be gradual, but my observations authorize me to say, that persons who have been addicted to them, should abstain from them suddenly, and entire;'. "Taste not, handle not, touch not," should be inscribed upon every vessel that contains spirits in the house of a man, who wishes to be cured of habits of intemperance. To obviate for a while, the debili- ty which arises from the sudden abstraction of the stimulus of spirits, laudanum, or bitters infused in water, should be taken, antl perhaps a larger quantity of beer or wine, than is consistent with the strict rules nft.eiiLper.de living. By the temporary nse of these substitutes for spirits, I have never known the transition to sober habits, to be att"nded v it'> a.,\ bad effects, but often with permanent health of body, and peace of mind. THE END WE 1V- BRUNSWICK: Printed Rv I,. Deauk, i'Oi an- Association at' CLERGr AND 07KF.R GeXTLEMEK. 1813. to? •■Ml II fef S g32L