rreid 1835 7 /?*&fer EVILS OF USING TOBACCO, AND THE NECESSITY OF LADIEDIATE AND ENTIRE REFORMATION. Delivered before the Fall River Lyceum, on the Evening of June 4th 1833, and before the Congregation to -Hhom the Author statedly ministers, on the Evening of October 27th, 1833. J? BY ORIN FOWLER, A. M., lEGATIOf / PASTOR OF THE FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, IN FALL RIVER, MASS. SECOND EDITION. CO L ' ° A 7*'V % BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY WILLIAM PEIRCE, NO. 9, OOHSHI11. 1835. * W v." i*i fellowship with the filthy weed. And can any man justify himself in the daily use of a disgusting plant, against the practice, opinion, and remonstrances of so large a portion of the civ- ilized world ? Can he be discharging the obligations of his duty, and enjoying the full amount of his privilege, while he suffers himself to be a bond-slave to his quid, his pipe, or his snuff-box? Either an im- portant a*rticle of the vegetable kingdom, lay hid from the civilized world nearly six thousand years; or since its discovery, the lovers of tobacco have formed an entirely erroneous opinion of its properties. In the sequel, I trust it will appear, that so far from possessing valua- ble properties, it is one of the most noxious weeds that grows ; that as an article of medicine, it possesses scarcely a redeeming quality ; and that, though it was not made in vain, if the world had remained 7 ignorant of it six thousand years longer, no cause of regret would have been occasioned. I maintain the position I have laid down, II. From a consideration of the ruinous effeects of tobacco upon the health and constitution of men. In considering this point, let us examine the properties of this weed, — the prominent diseases which the use of it induces,— and the experi- ence of unprejudiced observers. The properties of tobacco are decided- ly poisonous. In proof of this assertion, I appeal to ample and un- questionable authority. Professor Hitchcock says, " I group alcohol, opium and tobacco to- gether, as alike to be rejected; because they agree in being poisonous in their natures." "In popular language," says he, " alcohol is classed among the stimulants, and opium and tobacco among the narcotics, whose ultimate effect upon the animal system is to produce stupor and insensibility." He says, " Most of the powerful vegetable poisons, such as hen-bane, hemlock, thorn-apple, prussic acid, deadly night-shade, fox-glove and poison sumach, have an effect on the ani- mal system scarcely to be distinguished from that of opium and tobac- co. They impair the organs of digestion, and may bring on fatuity, palsy, delirium, or apoplexy." He says, " In those not accustomed to it, tobacco excites nausea, vomiting, dizziness, indigestion, mental dejection, and in short, the whole train of nervous complaints." Dr. Rees, in his Cyclopedia, says ; " A drop or two of the chemical oil of tobacco, being put upon the tongue of a cat, produces violent convulsions, and death itself in the space of a minute." Dr. Hossack classes tobacco with opium, ether, mercury, and other articles of the materia medica. He calls tobacco a " fashionable poi- son," in the various forms in which that narcotic is employed. He says, " The great increase of dispepsia; the late alarming frequency of apoplexy, palsy, epilepsy, and other diseases of the nervous system; is attributable, in part, to the use of tobacco." Dr. AVaterhouse says that Linneeus, in his natural arrangement has placed tobacco in the class Lurida — which signifies pale, ghastly, livid, dismal and fatal. "To the same ominous class," he adds, " be- long fox-glove, hen-bane, deadly night-shade, lobelia, and another poisonous plant, bearing the tremendous name Atropa, one of the fu- ries." He says, '■' AVhen tobacco is taken into the stomach for the first time, it creates nausea and extreme disgust. If swallowed, it excites violent convulsions of the stomach and of the bowels, to eject the poison either upward or downward. If it be not very speedily and entirely ejected, it produces great anxiety, vertigo, faintness, and 8 prostration of all the senses; and, in some instances, death has fol- lowed." The oil of this plant, he adds, is one of the strongest vege- table poisons, insomuch that we know of no animal that can resist its mortal effects. Moreover, says Dr. Waterhouse, after a long and hon- orable course of practice, " I never observed so many pallid faces, and so many marks of declining health ; nor ever knew so many hectical habits, and consumptive affections, as of late years;*and I trace this alarming inroad on young censtitutions, principally to the pernicious custom of smoking cigars." Professor Graham says, " Tobacco is one of the most powerful and deadly poisous in the vegetable kingdom." " Its effects on the living tissues of the animal system," he adds, "are always to destroy life ; as the experiments made on pigeons, cats and other animals abun- dantly prove." The Editors of the Journal of Health say, " Tobacco is in fact an absolute poison. A very moderate quantity introduced into the sys- tem, even applying the moistened leaves to the stomach, has been known very suddenly to extinguish life. In whatever form it may be employed, a portion of the active principles of tobacco, mixed with the saliva, invariably finds its way to the stomach, and disturbs or impairs the functions of that organ. Hence most, if not all, who are accus- tomed to the use of tobacco, labor under dyspeptic symptoms. Our advice is to desist immediately and entirely from the use of tobacco in every form, and in any quantity, however small. A reform, to be efficacious, must be entire and complete." Dr. Warren says, " The common belief that tobacco is beneficial to the teeth, is entirely erroneous; on the contrary, by its poisonous and relaxing qualities, it is positively injurious." Says another physician, " Though snuff has been prescribed for the headache, catarrh, and some species of opthalmia, and sometimes with good effect; yet in all cases where its use is continued, it not only fails of its medical effect, but commits great ravages on the whole nervous sj'stem, superinduc- ing hypochondria, tremors, a thickening of the voice, and premature decay of all the intellectual powers." As a diuretic, Dr. Fowler and others have found it in some cases to be valuable. Its narcotic properties have sometimes assuaged the toothache; but it always hastens the destruction of the teeth. But of all substances in pharmacy, there seems to be a general agreement among medical writers, that tobacco, though occasionally beneficial, is the most unmanageable, and used with the least confidence. A multitude of cases, confirming these views, have actually occur- red ; two or three of which I will cite. A clergyman, who commenc- 9 ed the use of tobacco in youth, says, " that no very injurious conse- quences were experienced till he entered the ministry, when his sys- tem began to feel its dreadful effects. His voice, his appetite and his strength failed ; and he was sorely afflicted with sickness at the stomach, indigestion, emaciation, melancholy, and a prostration of the whole nervous system. All this, says he, I attribute to the pernicious habit of smoking and chewing tobacco." At length he abandoned the quid and the pipe. His voice, appetite and strength were soon restored; all aches subsided, and in a little time general health was enjoyed. Another clergyman wri.es, " I thank God, and I thank you, for your advice to abandon smoking; my strength has doubled since I relinquished this abominable practice." " A respectable gentleman in middle life, who commenced chewing tobacco at the age of eighteen, was long afflicted with depression of spirits, great emaciation, and the usual dyspeptic symptoms. All at- tempts to relieve him were fruitless, till he was persuaded to dispense with his quid. Immediately his spirits revived, and he soon regained his health."* Cases of reform and cure are occurring by thousands, every year, all over the land. Let every lover of tobacco, who is afflicted with dyspepsia, and nervous maladies, reform, immediately and entirely; and let him adopt a simple and rational system of diet, regimen, and employment; and in nine cases out often, he may hope to enjoy good health, and live long to bless the world. The conclusion from all this evidence is established, that tobacco is an active poison; that its constant use induces the most distressing and fatal diseases; and that, as a medicine, it is rarely needful, and never used, even medicinally, with entire confidence This loathsome weed, then, should not be used, even medicinally, except in extreme cases, and then in the hands of a skillful physician. For every man — and especially for every boy, who has hardly entered his teens — to take this poison into his own hands, and determine for himself how much he will use, is as preposterous, as if he were to take upon him- self to deal out arsenic, corrosive sublimate, or calomel. No man can devote himself to the pipe, the quid, or the snuff-box, without certain injury to his health and constitution. He may not perceive the injury at once, on account of immediate exhilaration ; but complicated chronic complaints will creep upon him apace, mak- ing life a burden, and issuing in premature dissolution. And just so * Extracts in point might here be given from numerous letters received by the Au- thor, since the publication of the first edition ; but it is unnecessary." 10 certain as it is our duty to do no murder, — to use all lawful means to preserve our lives, and the lives of others; as certain is it our duty and our privilege to practice entire, abstinence from the use of tobacco. I maintain the position I h:ive laid down, III. From the consideration of the ruinous effects of tobacco upon the intellect. Here, again, let Professor Hitchcock Fpeak. Snys'he, " Intoxicat- ing drinks, opium and tobacco, exert a pernicious influence upon the intellect. They tend directly to debilitate the organs ; and we cannot take a more effectual course to cloud the understanding, weaken the memory, unfix the attention, and confuse all the mental operations, than by thus entailing upon ourselves the whole hateful train of ner- vous maladies. These can bow down to the earth an intellect of giant strength, and make it grind in bondage, like Sampson shorn of his locks and deprived of his vision. The use of tobacco may'seem to soothe the feelings, and quicken the operations of the mind; but to what purpose is it that the machine is furiously running and buzzing after the balance wheil is taken off? " The late Governor Sullivan, speaking of the use of tobacco, says, " It has never failed to render me dull and heavy, to interrupt my usual alertness of thought, and to weaken the powers of my mind in analyzing subjects and defining ideas." The actual loss of intellectual power, which tobacco has hitherto oc- casioned, and is still causing, in this Christian nation, is immense. How immense, it is impossible accurately to calculate. Many a man who might have been a giant, has not risen above mediocrity; and many a man who might have been respectable and useful, has sunk in- to obscurity, and buried his talents in the earti. This is a considera- tion of deepest interest to every philanthropist, patriot, and Christian in the land, and especially to all our youth. AVe live at a time, and under circumstances, which call for the exertion of all our intellectual strength, cultivated, improved, and sanctified, to the higiiest measure of possibility. Error, ignorance, and sin, must be met and vanquish- ed; they must be met and vanquished by light and love. The eye of angels is upon us, — the eye of God is upon us, — and shall we fetter, and palsy, and ruin our intellectual capabilities, for the paltry pleasure of using one of the most poisonous, loathsome, and destructive weeds found in the whole vegetable kindom ? Let us rather shake off this abominable practice, and rise, as individuals and as a nation, in all our intellectual potency. — and let us go forth from day to day, to the noble purposes of our destiny, untrammelled by the quid, or the pipe, or the snuff-box ; and before another generation shall, lie down in the grave, our efforts and our example may cause the light of human 11 science, and the light of civil and religious liberty, and the light of Bible truth, to blaze through all our vallies, and over all our hills, from Greenland to Cape Horn, — and with a lustre that shall illu- mine the world. I maintain my position, IV . From a consideration of the ruinous effects of tobacco upon public and private morals. The ruinous effects of tobacco upon public and private morals, are seen in the idle, sauntering habits, which the use of it engenders,— in the benumbing, grovelling, stupid, sensations which it induces,— but especially in perpetuating and extending the practice of using in- toxicating drinks. Governor Sullivan has truly said, " that the tobacco pipe excites a demand for an extraordinary quantity of some beverage to supply the waste of glandular secretion, in proportion to the expense of saliva; and ardent spirits are the common substitutes ; and the smoker is often reduced to a state of dram drinking, and finishes his life as a sot." Dr. Agnevv has truly said, that '■ the use of the pipe leads to the im- moderate use of ardent spirits." Dr. Rush has truly said, " that smoking and chewing tobacco, by rendering water and other simple liquors insipid to the taste, dispose very much to the stronger stimu'.ous of ardent spirits ; hence [says he] the practice of smoking cigars, has been followed by the use of brandy and water as common drink." A writer in the Genius of Temperance, says that his practice of smoking and chewing the filthy weed, "produced a continual thirst for stimulating drinks; and this tormenting thirst [says he] led me into the habit of drinking ale, porter, brandy, and other kinds of spir- it, even to the extent, at times, of partial intoxication." He adds, " I reformed ; and after I had subdued this appetite for tobacco, I lost all desire for stimulating drinks." Now the fact that some chew, and smoke, and snuff without becom- ing sots, proves nothing against the geneial principle, that it is the natural tendency of using tobacco to promote intoxication. Probably one tenth, at least, of all the drunkards annually made in the nation, and throughout the world, are made drunkards through the use of to- bacco* Ifthirty thousand drunkards are made annually in the Uni- ted States, three thousand must be charged to the use of tobacco. If thirty thousand drunkards die annually, in the United States, three * Edward C. Delevan, Esq., Secretary of the New York State Temperance Soci- ety, says, in a letter just received, — " The sulijrct of your Essay is one of immens* importance to the world and to the temperance cause. The use of this vile weed has been the medium of forming the appetite for strong drink, and ultimaffly deploying thousands of the most promising youth of our country. You will hardly evei meet 12 thousand of these deaths must be charged to the use of tobacco. If twenty thousand criminals are sentenced to our penitentiaries in twen- ty years, through the influence of strong drink, two thousand must be charged to the use of tobacco. If fifty-six millions of gallons of ardent spirits have been annually consumed in this country, five and a half millions must be charged to the use of tobacco. And of all the Sab- bath-breaking, profanity, quarrelling, and crime of every description, caused by the use of intoxicating drink; a tithe must be charged to the use of tobacco. And what friend of good morals, — what friend of man, — what friend of his country,— what friend of Christ#nd trPe religion, — and especially, what friend of the tempeia*fce cause.— can look at these results with the eye of candor and compassion for his fellow-men, and then not deliberately resolve that he will never chew another quid, nor smoke another whiff, nor snuff another pinch of the dirty weed ? I maintain my position, V. From a consideration of the amazing loaste of properly, which the use of tobacco involves. On this point I have been unable to ob- tain the means for making out a perfectly accurate* statistical result. I can only approximate a definite calculation. This iipproximation , however, will serve all the purposes of this argument. We will examine three items: the cost of the article, — the time wasted by the use of it, — and the pauperism it occasions. From a statement lately furnished me from the Treasury department of our National Government, exhibiting the qantity and value of cigars, and snuff, exported from and imported into the United States, annally, from 1st October, 1820, to 30th September, 1832, it appears that the value of cigars imported into the United States in 1621, was $113,601. In 1827 it was $174,931. In 1832 it was $473,134 ; while from the the same document it appears that the value of cigars exported, in each of those years, was about one quarter the value of imports. Hence it appears that, in 1832, about half a million of dollars were paid for imported cigars; while in 1821, only $113,601 were paid; being more than a fourfold increase in eleven years. Whether there has been a corresponding increase in the value of domestic cigars consumed, I have no means of determining. From the fact of so pro- digious an increase of imported cigars, I am led to fear that the evil with an intemperate person without finding him addicted to the use of tobacco. The public only want light on this important subject, to act. Your able and convincing Disquisition will be the means of doing much good. I hope funds will be provided to furnish a copy to each clergyman in the United States. Send me one thousand copies of the second edition, as soon as it is from the press." 13 of cigar smoking has increased in this country within ten years, far more rapidly than the increase of population. From this treasury document, it appears also, that in 1834, the value of unmanufactured tobacco exported from the United States, was Of manufactured tobacco, the value was Of snuff, the value was Making a total of In 1832, the value of unmanufactured tobacco ex ported, was Of manufactured tobacco, Ofsnuff, ..... Making a total of for 16.32, and an increase from the year 1624, of AA bother the quantity consumed in this country equals the quantity exported, or exceeds that quantity, [ have no data enabling me to give a definite answer. But from the fact that large quantities of tobacco are raised in various other parts of the world, for foreign consump- tion ; and from the fact that the people of this country are, above all other people under the sun, a chewing, smoking, snuffing people; I have very little doubt that the amount used in this country is double the amount exported. If so, the sum total paid annually, for this rile weed, in this Christian country, is $10,503,222. But as I wish in this examination, to put the estimate below rather than above the truth, I will set down the value of the tobacco, cigars, and snuff, consumed annually in this nation, as equal to the amount exported ; that is, in round numbers, 10,000,000 of dollars. That this is a very low estimate, will appear by another conclusive calculation. According to the census of 1830, the population of the United States, over twenty years of age, is about six millions. Suppose one in four of our adult population, use tobacco in some form ; (and this is a very moderate supposition,) it gives one million, five hundred thousand : and suppose one in twelve of those who have not reached the age of twenty, use it; it gives five hundred thousand more: making a total of two millions — or one sixth of our population — who use tobacco in some form. Now suppose the expense to the consumers of this noxious drug, varies according to the quantity, and mode of using it. The expense to some is two dollars a year, to some it is five, and to others ten, 2 $4,855,566. 2,477,990. 203,789. $7,537,345. $5,999,769. 3,456,071. 295,771 $9,751,611, $2,214,266. 14 twenty, and even fifty dollars a year. A laboring man, of my ac quaintance, who did not use tobacco extravagantly, and only by chewing, told me that it cost him five dollars a year. A young lady of my acquaintance, says her snuff costs eight dollars a year. If a man pay three cents a day for cigars, it amounts to ten dollars, nine- ty-five cents a year. If he pay six cents, it amounts to twenty-one dollars, ninety cents a year. If he pay twelve and a half cents, it amounts to forty-four dollars, sixty-two cents a year. It is the opinion of good judges, that very many, who smoke free- ly and use Spanish cigars, pay more than fifty dollars a year for this foolish gratification. King James, in his '•Counterblast," says, " Some of the gentry of this land, bestow three, some four hundred pounds a year, upon this precious stink." It will certainly be a moderate calculation to put down one quarter of the consumers at two dollars a year, — one quarter at five, — one quarter at eight, — and one quarter at ten dollars a year. Then the several items will stand thus : — Haifa million at two dollars, is......$1,000,000. Half a million at five dollars, is...... 2,500,000. Half a million at eight do'lars, is...... 4,000,000. ,i Half a million at ten dollars, is...... 5,000,000. Total, $12,500,000. Again: the amount of tobacco annually consumed in France, as appears from authentic documents, is about seven millions of pounds ; which is about one pound to every four persons. The amount annu- ally consumed in England, as appears from authentic documents, is about seventeen millions; which is about one pound to every man, woman and child, in that nation.* In the United States, probably there are eight times as much used as in France, and three times as much as in England, in proportion to our population. If so, the quan- tity used in this country cannot fall short of thirty-five millions of pounds ;t which, at thirty cents a pound, amounts to ten and a half millions of dollars; not including cigars and snuff, which cost half as much more ; making the total sum fifteen and three fourths mil- lions of dollars. And this enormous sum is doubtless below what the "article actually costs the consumers. * The tobacco imported and used for home consumption in Great Britain and Ireland in 1832, amounted to 20,313,(551 pounds — the duty on which was 15,300,000 dollars. , f li765,000 pounds of tobacco passed up the Erie Canal in seven and a half months : in 1834. 15 From these three results, we believe there cannot be a doubt that the actual expense of tobacco, in its various forms, to the consumers in this country, may safely be set down at ten 7itillions of dollars a year. The amount of time lost by the consumers of tobacco, is another item of no inconsiderable moment. Some spend two, three, and four hours a day, in this vile indulgence. To all who use the article, in any way, it occasions the loss of more or less time. If we put down the average amount at half an hour a day ; and reckon the time thus lost at four cents an hour, it will amount — not reckoning Sabbaths — to six dollars, twentv-six cents a year, for each individual; which, for the whole company of consumers, is an amount of $12,520,000. The pauperism which tobacco occasions, is another fearful item. Multitudes who are scarcely able to procure the necessaries of life, will shift, by sacrificing health and comfort, to procure the daily quantum safficit of tobacco. Many very poor families use tobacco, in all ways. Now suppose a poor family use twenty-five cents' worth of tobacco a week ; it will amount to twelve dollars fifty cents a year,— and in fifty years, reckoning principal and interest, it will amount to three thousand five hundred and fifty-two dollars. Just look at this tax for snuff and tobacco, in a single aspect more. Many think it will make no man the poorer, to pay six cents a day for this indulgence. It will make every man the poorer. Let any young mechanic, or farmer, or merchant, consume six and a quarter cents' worth of this drug a day — beginning at twenty years of age, and con- tinuing until he is sixty years old — and the sum total, reckoning principal and interest, will amount, in these forty years, to three thou- sand five hundred and twenty-nine dollars, thirty-six cents. If the cost of tobaeco,— the neglect of business which it occasions,— the expense of the pipes and the boxes, and the various apparatus which the use of it involves,— and the intoxication to which it leads,—all be reckoned up, the amount of pauperism which this weed brings upon the nation, cannot be less than one quarter of the sum total of all our pauperism. And the sum total of the pauperism in this nation, has been shown, again and again, to be not less than twelve millions of dollars, annually. Hence the pauper tax, occasioned by the use of tobacco, may be set down at three millions of dollars, annually. Here we have, then, the expense of tobacco, $10,000,000. The time lost by the use of it, - 12,520,000. The pauper tax which it occasions, - - - 3,000,000. Total, $25,520,000. 16 To this sum should be added one-tenth of the waste of property, which strong drink occasions ; inasmuch as one tenth of the rum- diinking must be charged to tobacco. Now, it has been estimated that the whole cost of strong drink used annually, in this country, amounts to one hundred and twenty-five millions of dollars; a tenth of which is twelve and a half millions of dollars. If this tithe be added to the above estimate, it will make the sum total thirty-eight and a half millions. But as I intend my estimates shall be moderate, I will say nothing of the waste of property which tobacco occasions in connection with strong drink. I will put down the sum total as above twenty-five millions of dollars. Twenty-five millions of dollars, consumed by the use of tobacco, in this Christian nation, annually ; and not a little of it by professors of religion, and ministers of the gospel, who are required by their Lord and Master to deny themselves,— to take up their cross, — to let their light shine before men, that they may see their good works, and glorify our Father in heaven. Nearly the whole of this twenty- five millions of dollars is a dead loss to the nation ; yes, it is infinitely worse than a dead loss ; it not only does no good, but it actually goes to make fools and beggars, idlers and sots, — to purchase dyspepsia, early graves and everlasting shame. And what would this vast amount of property accomplish, if saved and devoted to useful purposes. Twenty-five millions of dollars annually, if applied to the improve- ment of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, and to the ad- vancement of the arts, sciences, and true religion, would accom- plish everything for this nation, that the enlightened patriot and true Christian can ask for. Twenty-five millions of dollars, annually, would soon furnish ca- nals, and rail-roads, and all other desirable facilities for intercom- munication throughout the nation. Twenty-five millions of dollars, annually, would sustain all our colleges, academies and other schools, and all the religious and benevolent institutions of this whole country. It would rear seminaries of learning in every State where they are needed ; and it would plant a Sabbath school, with a sufficient libra- ry in every school district. Twenty-five millions of dollars, annually, if applied judiciously to the emancipation and improvement of the colored people, would free us from the curse of slavery in less than ten years. Twenty-five millions of dollars, annually, would send forth to the nations now perishing in heathen darkness, ten thousand mission- aries, and five millions of tracts, every year, provided the men could be found. 17 Twenty-five millions of dollars, anunally, would, in five years, fur- nish all the money necessary to carry into complete execution, that noble purpose of the Ameiican Bible Society, of giving a copy of the Bible, within a specified time, to every accessible family on the earth. And what friend of man is there among us, — what patriot is there, — what Christian is there, — who can look at these truths, and not make up his mind to abandon all use of tobacco, forever ; and to exert the whole weight of his influence and example to persuade others to do the same ? I am aware, indeed, that it may be said, if the whole company of tobacco-chewers, smokers, and snuffers, should at once abandon all use of this weed, and thus withdraw their whole patronage, this twen- ty-five millions of dollars, which now gives wealth to many a man engaged in growing, manufacturing, and vending the poison, would be so much capital unemployed ; and the means of living would be cut off from many a family, — and bankruptcy, and wretchedness would be the consequent portion of many an individual. This may be true. And it may be true, too, that the like consequences would follow the universal abandonment of intoxicating liquors. But what then ' Shall one sixth part of the nation continue to use this poison, because, forsooth, the producers and venders of it will lose their profits if it be abandoned ? Shall the intellect, and health, and comfort, and wealth, and lives of hundreds and thousands of our fellow citizens, be sacrificed yearly ; and widows and orphans be multiplied by scores and fifties, in every section of this wide-spreading country; and one of the prominent auxiliaries of intemperance, — and consequently of crime, and insanity, and eternal woe — be cherished ; and twenty-five millions of dollars be wasted, and worse than wasted; and all this, that the producers and vendtrs may feed and fatten on the gains ? This objection lies equally against the temperance reform, and every other reform where cupidity and avarice are involved. As to the producers, it is affirmed on good authority, that hemp, and corn, and other useful articles may be substituted without loss, and even with advantage. As to the venders, their capital may all be profitably employed upon valuable merchandize, without damage. But if it were not so; where health,life, and happiness are involved, no good man can hesitate. The path of duty is plain. We are bound to walk in it, even though it run counter to the gains of those engag- ed in unlawful commerce. I maintain my position, VI. From a consideration of the mortality which tobacco occasions. *2 18 Some of my readers may be startled at this consideration. They may not have dreamed, even, that tobacce kills anybody. So insidi- ous are the effects of this poison, and so insensible have the commu- nity been to its abominations, that very few have regarded the use of tobacco as the cause of swelling our bills of mortality. But though appalling, it is nevertheless true, that tobacco carries vast multitudes to the grave, all over our country, every year. Says Dr. Salmon, " I am confident more people have died of apoplexies, since the use of snuff in one year, than have died of that disease in an hundred years before ; and most, if not all, whom I have observed to die, of late of that disease, were extreme and constant snuff-takers." The late Rev. Dr. Samuel Cooper, of Boston, by constant use of snuff, brought on a disorder of the head, which was thought to have ended his days. A very large quantity of hardened Scoth snuff was found, by a. post mortem examination, between the external nose and the brain. The late Governor Sullivan, speaking of Governor Hancock, the early President of Congress, says, " Governor Hancock was an immoderate chewer of tobacco; but being a well-bred man, and a perfect gentle- man, he, from a sense of decorum, refrairted from spitting in compa- ny, or in well-dressed rooms. This produced the habit of swallowing the juice of the tobacco, the consequence of which was, his stomach became inactive, and a natural appetite seldom returned; the agreea- ble sensations of hunger could not be experienced but by the use of stimulants, to satisfy which he swallowed more food than his digestive powers could dispose of. This derangement in chylification increased his gout, his stomach became paralytic, and he died at the age of fifty- eight." Again, says Governor Sullivan, " My own brother, the active Gen- eral Sullivan, began early in life to take snuff It injured essentially a fine voice which he possessed as a public speaker. AVhen he was an officer in the American army, he carried his snuff loose in his pocket. He said he did this because the opening of a snuff-box in the field of review, or on the field of battle, was inconvenient. At times he had violent pains in the head; the intervals grew shorter and shorter, and the returns more violent, when his sufferings ended in a stroke of palsy, which rendered him insensible to pain, made him help- less and miserable, and lodged him in the grave before he was fifty years of age; and I have no doubt [says the Governor,] but all this sprung from the use of snuff." He adds, " I have known some per- sons live to old age, in the extravagant use of tobacco ; but they bear a small proportion to those who, by the habit of using tobacco, have been swept into the grave in early or middle life." 19 Professor Silliman mentions two affecting cases of young men, in the Institution with which he is connected, who were carried to an early grave by tobacco. One of them, he says, entered college with an athletic frame; but he acquired the habit of using tobacco, and would sit and smoke by the hour together. His friends tried to per- suade him to quit the practice ; but he loved his lust, and would have it, live or die : the consequence was, he went down to the grave, a suicide. One of the German periodicals says, the chief German physiolo- gists compute, that of twenty deaths of men between eighteen and twenty-five, ten, that is, one half, originate in the waste of the con- stitution by smoking. They declare, also, with much truth, that tobacco burns out the blood, the teeth, the eyes, and the brain. To this unequivocal testimony, which is confirmed by the observa- tion of every intelligent person who has turned his attention to this matter, much more might be added ; but it is unnecessary. How large a proportion of the twenty thousand deaths — reckoning one death to a hundred souls — which occur annually, among the two millions of tobacco consumers in this country, are to be charged to the use of this deadly narcotic, I am unable definitely to determine. If we sup- pose one quarter of these deaths to be caused by tobacco, it will give us the number of five thousand. Five thousaud deaths in these Uni- ted States, every year from the use of tobacco ! and this is doubtless far below the actual number. Five thousand valuable lives sacrificed in this enlightened land, annually, in the use of a dirty plant, that no living creature, except man and the tobacco worm, will touch, or taste, or handle. Five thousand men and women carried to the grave, year- ly, by a poisonous weed, which does no good, and which, for filthiness and disgust, scarcely lias its parallel in the whole vegetable kingdom. Is there a Christian,—is there a patriot, — is there a friend of hu- manity,— is there an individual, that values his own probationary ex- istence, — who can look at the sweeping mortality which tobacco brings upon the nation, and longer indulge his attachment to his quid, his pipe or his snuff-box ? Is there one who will pause and look at this matter, and not resolve that he will, forthwith, entirely, and for- ever, abandon a practice which does so much to people the grave ? I maintain my position, VII.__From a consideration of the apologies of the lovers of tobacco. I call them apologies. They eannot be considered reasons. Al- most every lover of the dirty weed, feels that he needs an apology. 2(J One will tell us he has a cold, watery stomach, and he thinks that tobacco, by promoting expectoration, relieves the difficulty. Another will tell us he is very much troubled with indigestion, and he thinks tobacco relieves the difficulty ; though, in truth, tobacco is the very worst drug he could use to relieve that disease, and is among the pri- mordial causes of inducing it. Another will tell us that he is afflicted with the rising of his food after eating, and he thinks tobacco gives immediate relief; not suspecting, perhaps, that this rising of the food is occasioned by over eating. Another will tell us he has a distressing difficulty in the head, and brain, and he thinks a little good Scotch snuff affords relief; as though filling the pores and cavities of the head, and clogging up the brain, with this dirty stuff, would remove a disease which in most cases it originates. Others use tobacco to preserve the teeth ; and this, though it is a solemn truth, that many a one loses his teeth by smoking and chew- ing the poisonous plant. Others, again, use tobacco to excite the mind to more vigorous intellectual effort But when and where do we find great lovers of tobacco great students, and intellectual giants ? Dr. Rush says, " I suspect tobacco is oftener used for the want of ideas, than to excite them." There are some whose apology for using tobacco is, that it guards them against the power of contagious dis- eases. But Dr. Rees affirms that tobacco does not contain an antidote against contagion, and that, in general, it has no antiseptic power : and is therefore of no special use. There is another class, still, who use tobacco because it soothes the irksomenessof life. They fear sol- itude ; and to prevent self-examination, and to while away their pro- bation time, they fly to the pipe, quid, and snuff-box; and soon, by an easy transition, to the wine-glass and brandy-bottle. These are the usual apologies of the devotees of tobacco. And what do they amount to ? In truth, the common opinion that tobacco is good for the head-ache, — weak eyes, — cold and watery stomachs, — the preservation of the teeth, —and the like, is sheer delusion. Let every man and woman, who would live long, and usefully, and happi- ly, awake from this delusion; and let no one, as he values health, life, and salvation, taste, touch, or handle, the filthy poison. I maintain my position, VIII, ano lastly — From a consideration of the eternalruin which tobacco occasions. On this point, a word or two only, will suffice. That tobacco carries many a soul down to the pit of eternal woe is manifest from its connection with drunkenness, and from its inducing disease and death. Every man who dies a drunkard, and every man 21 who, knowingly and recklessly, brings upon himself disease and death through the influence of tobacco, is a suicide. And drunkards and suicides cannot inherit the kingdom of God. How many will at last, ascribe their eternal ruin to alcohol and tobacco, cannot now be told. That it will be a great multitude, (perhaps a great multitude which no man can number,) we have no reason to doubt. AAhat then, I ask, ought to be done? AVhat can be done ? AVhat must be done ? If this poisonous narcotic be of recent origin ; if it be ruinous to the health and constitution, and intellect, and public and pri- vate morals; if it occasions an amazing waste of pvoperty, — and a multitude of deaths,— and eternal ruin to many precious souls; and if it do no good, — and there be no apology for using it, which will bear examination; then something ought to be done, and it ought to be done immediately. And, only one thing need be done. And that can be done, and it ought to be done. It is this: —tobacco can be abandoned. And if moral influence enough can be enlisted, it will be abandoned. TOTAL ABSTINENCE is the only sure remedy. TOTAL AB- STINENCE will deliver us from all the evils which this weed has brought down upon individuals and families, and the nation. Nothing else will do it. And total abstinence can be adopted and practiced. True; in some cases, it may cost an effort; but, in every instance, three weeks' perseverance will overcome the habit. Three weeks' total abstinence, will disenthrall every victim, and oive him the pros- pect of freedom, plenty, health, and happiness. And shall this effort be made ? A mighty effort it must be, to liberate and save this whole nation — and especially our young men and maidens — from the curs- es of the quid, the pipe, and the snuff-box. I appeal to my fellow-citizens. I appeal to the nation, and the whole nation. Shall the effort be made ? I appeal to patriots. Patriotism forbids the man who loves his country, to shrink from any personal sacrifice, if he can thereby arrest some great national evil. That the use of tobacco is a great na- tional evil, appears from the considerations which have been laid before you. It has been shown that tobacco is weakening the physical and mental energies of this nation, — that it is depraving our morals, and destroying the public conscience, — and that it is causing an amazing waste of property, and health and life. I ask every patriot to look at this portentous evil. Every true patriot, who will examine the length, breadth, and depth of this evil, cannot but feel that it claims his attention. And he will inquire what efforts, what sacrifices, can deliver us from the curses of this narcotic ? The- 22 answer to this inquiry is an easy answer, — the effort is an easy effort, — the sacrifice is an easy sacrifice. Let every true- patriot in our country abstain from the poison, immediately, entirely, and forever ; and let him use the whole weight of his influence and example to persuade others — and especially the young men and maidens of this republic—to practice entire abstinence; and the work will soon be done. We put the question to every true patriot: will you do it ? I appeal to Christians. Your religion requires you to abstain from the very appearance of evil. It requires you to deny your- selves, to take up your cross, and to follow Christ through evil, as well as through good report. Is there no appearance of evil, in the use of tobacco ? Can the Christian deny himself, and follow Christ, with the quid, or pipe in his mouth, or the contents of the snuff-box in his nose ? If Christ himself were here on earth, in this age of action, when six hundred millions of men, for whom he died, are perishing for lack of vision — think you he would waste a single cent of property, or a single moment of time, or a single ounce of health and mental energy, in the habitual use of this narcotic ? Would he handle, touch, or taste, the poison ? And will you, whose names are written in his book, — you, who have been bought with his blood, and sanctified through his grace, and made heirs of all the riches of his kingdom, — you, whom he requires to be examples in all things,— will you handle, or touch or taste it? Let every Christian in our country, abstain from this poison, immediately, entirely, and forever ; and let him use the whole weight of his influence and example, to persuade others to practice entire abstinence ; and this work of reform • will soon be done. AVe put the question to every true Christian : will you do it ? I appeal to the youth of both sexes. You are the flower and the hope not only of this nation, but of all nations struggling for freedom. The destinies of this republic are about being placed, under God, in your hands ; and inasmuch as all the friends of freedom, everywhere, are looking up to our institutions for light and aid, the destinies of the world will soon rest with a mightier weight of responsibility upon your shoulders, than upon any other generation that has come forth , upon the stage of action, for twenty centuries. The importance of sound and enlightened principles — of pure and elevated examples, and independent and decided action in you, is above all estimation. You are placed in the moral Thermopylae of the world. The evils arising from alcohol and tobacco, which you have it in your power to avert from your country, are more dreadful than the invasion at 23 Xerxes with his millions. The cause of moral reform, in the use of the latter of these articles, which we urge upon you with deepest and sincerest solicitude, is far more urgent than that in which the Bruti and the Gracchi offered up their lives. Some of you have not yet handled or tasted the fatal drug. Let all such stand firm hencefor- ward, and never yield to the power of custom, temptation and lust. Some of you, on the other hand, have permitted yourselves to become the victims of this drug. Let all such be urged by the voice of pat- riotism, religion, self-respect, reason, conscience, and duty, to abstain from this poison, immediately, entirely, and forever. And then every young man, and every younii woman, in the republic, shall be free from all the calamities attending the use of this narcotic; and love, and peace, and joy, will run through the land, and flow over the world. AVe put the question to every youth : will you do it? I appeal to the friends of temperance. You have enlisted your energies to expel intoxicating drinks from common use throughout the world. Go on, and prosper. But, as you go, remember, that complete success will not crown your exertions unless you are con- sistent, — unless you abandon all use of tobacco, the companion and sister of alcohol. As you go forth to the noble work you have un- dertaken, you will be met at every corner, with the declaration of A. B. and O, /am ready to abstain from alcohol, when you do from tobacco, and how effectually will this declaration shut your mouth, and destroy your influence. Be, consistent. Carry your principles into all your evil habits, and a moral potency will be diffused through what you say and do, that nothing can resist. We put the question to every friend of temperance : will you do it ? I appeal to American/ema/cs. As mothers, wives and daughters, you have it in your power (without turning aside from your appropri- ate duties) to put an end to the use of this disgusting weed. The children and youth of this nation, to say nothing of the young men and fathers, are almost exclusively under your control; and may be moulded at your pleasure. You know how filthy, disgusting, ruinous, is the practice against which we ask you to set your faces. Only practice ENTIRE ABSTINENCE yourselves, and urge this practice upon all within your reach; and in less than twenty years, this reformation will be completed. We put the question to every mother, wife — daughter : will you do it ? I appeal to the medical profession. You are the guardians of the health of the republic. You are acquainted with the deadly proper- ties of the drug in question. You can understand the necessity, and 24 appreciate the importance of reform. You know that entire abstinence is urged by paramount considerations. In the work of reform from spirit-drinking, you have acted in a manner that reflects honor upon your profession. In the work of reform now urged upon your notice, we calculate upon your active, hearty co-operation. If you put your hand to this work, by precept, and by example; if you abstain entire- ly, and forever, from all uve of this plant, and inculcate entire absti- nence, as you have opportunity ; the work which now bespeaks your attention, will soon be done. We put the question to every medical man : will you do it ? Finally — I appeal to ministers of the Gospel. You are stationed on the watch-towers of Zion, as guardians of the public morals. Against every abomination your great Master requires you to cry aloud and spare not; to lift up your voice like a trumpet; to show the people their transgressions, and the house of Jacob their sins. He requires you to be examples to the flock, in all things, that, while " You allure to brighter worlds," you "may lead the way." I ask you to look at the influence of tobacco upon the health, wealth, morals, and lives of this repub- lic ; and then to decide, as in the fear of God, whether the blood of souls may not be found on your garments, if you do not abstain your- selves from all common use of this drug, and warn every man around you to do likewise* Suffer us to point you to Him who went about doing good, and pleased not himself, and set a pure and perfect example in everything; and also to that early servant of his, who would abstain from things good and lawful, rather than prejudice the interests of Zion. What reception would the Apostles have met, when they went about to enlighten and reform the world, if they had carried with them their snuff-boxes, pipes, cigars, and pig-tail tobac- co ? But a word to the wise is sufficient. Let all who minister in holy things, abstain from this poison, immediately, entirely, and for- ever ; and let them use the whole weight of their influence, and ex- ample, to persuade others — and especially our youth — to practice entire abstinence; and this good work will soon be done. We put the question to every minister of Christ: will you do it ? * Says a distinguished correspondent— the most efficient officer of one of our benevolent institutions, " Not long since a clergyman called on me as agent for one of the most popular Societies for spreading the knowledge of Christ crucified throughout the world: his breath was intolerable, and the tobacco juice had formed a current from each corner of his mouth downward. I need not describe to you my feelings at this exhibition." MR. FOWLERIS DISGIUISITION ON THE EVILS OF USING TOBACCO.