ON DRINKS.
Thirst the best guide in taking simple drinks--Thirst increased
by diminution of the circulating fluids--The desire for liquids
generally an indication of their propriety--Much fluid hurtful
at meals--Most useful three or four hours later--The temperature
of drinks is of consequence--Curious fall of temperature in the
stomach from cold water--Ices hurtful after dinner--Useful in
warm weather, when digestion is completed and caution used--Cold
water more dangerous than ice when the body is overheated--Tepid
drinks safest and most refreshing after perspiration--Kinds of
drink--Water safe for every constitution--Wine, spirits, and
other fermented liquors, too stimulating for general use, but
beneficial in certain circumstances--Test of their utility.
On the subject of drinks two questions naturally occur. _When_
ought we to drink? and, _What_ ought we to drink? On both I shall
offer a few very brief remarks.
In the first part of this volume I endeavoured to shew that the
sensation of _thirst_ is given to us for the express purpose of
impelling us to take liquids whenever the wants of the system require
them, and that, in all ordinary circumstances, we cannot have a better
or a safer guide. Such is the general case; but exposed as we are
to numerous deviations from the intentions of Nature in our ways of
living, a few precautionary observations may not be without use.
The quantity of fluid separated from the blood and thrown out of
the system, in the course of twenty-four hours, by perspiration,
exhalation from the lungs, the urinary discharge, and the various other
secretions, is very great; and were not the loss as regularly supplied
by the ingestion of liquid, either as food or as drink, the blood
would speedily become so thick as to be unfit for circulation. This
actually happens in spasmodic cholera, in which the serum or watery
portion of the blood passes off through the bowels with such rapidity,
as to cause the entire suppression of the urinary secretion, and in
which consequently, the urgency of thirst is almost always excessive.
In the healthy state, however, the loss of fluid is never too rapid
unless under severe exertion or exposure to a very high temperature,
both being circumstances in which it is well known that thirst becomes
urgent in proportion to the necessities of the frame.
In proof of the sensation of thirst being greatly dependent upon the
quantity of fluid circulating in the vessels, Professor Dunglison of
Maryland refers to the fact, mentioned by Dupuytren, that he “succeeded
in allaying the thirst of animals by injecting milk, whey, water, and
other fluids into their veins;” and to Orfila’s statement, “that, in
his toxicological experiments, he frequently allayed, in this way,
the excessive thirst of animals to which he had administered poison,
and which were incapable of drinking, owing to the œsophagus having
been tied. He found, also, that the blood of animals was more and more
deprived of its watery portions as the abstinence from liquids was more
prolonged;”[59] and hence the greater thirst naturally experienced
under such circumstances.
As a general rule, then, the desire for liquids will in itself be an
indication of their propriety; but in gratifying it, we should be
careful not to drink so fast as either to distend the stomach beyond
proper bounds, or to disturb the progress of digestion by undue
dilution too soon after eating. Many persons, from habit rather than
thirst, impair the tone of the stomach by drinking largely during
or immediately after meals, and thus relaxing the mucous coat, and
probably affecting the quality of its secretions. If the gastric juice
be greatly diluted by extraneous fluids, it is natural to suppose that
its solvent power must be diminished; but whether this explanation be
sound or not, the practice of drinking frequently is certainly hurtful,
and therefore we ought to avoid it.
Experience proves that a moderate quantity of liquid during a meal is
beneficial; and if we drink little at a time, the risk of exceeding
the proper limit will be very small. Dyspeptics, however, ought to be
on their guard against taking too much, as they are apt to be misled
by uneasy sensations in the region of the stomach, which are relieved
for the moment, but afterwards aggravated, by the free dilution of
the food. Those, also, who live well, and are in the habit of taking
wine daily whether the system requires it or not, often fall into the
error of excessive indulgence in liquids to mitigate the thirst and
irritability which the unnecessary use of stimulus never fails to
induce, especially at night. The continual dilution, however, adds
to the mischief, by increasing the debility of the stomach, and, as
pointed out in the chapter on Thirst, the only effectual remedy is
to adapt the diet and regimen to the real wants of the constitution.
Except in disease, a continually recurring thirst must proceed from
mismanagement, and it is to be satisfied by an improved and rational
regimen, and not by oceans of fluid, which only weaken the stomach
still more, and aggravate the craving they are meant to cure.
The opinion is very prevalent, that mild drinks may be taken with most
advantage about three or four hours after a solid meal; and, certainly,
the almost universal use of tea or coffee about that time appears
to sanction its soundness. Theoretically, too, we might expect this
result; for digestion is then nearly over, and any food remaining in
the stomach is already in a fluid state. Many objections, however,
have been made to both tea and coffee as an evening beverage, but
most of them seem to me to apply to their undue quantity and strength
rather than to their temperate use. When made very strong, or taken in
large quantity, especially late in the evening, they not only ruin the
stomach, but very seriously derange the health of the brain and nervous
system.
The question of drink is of little importance as regards breakfast.
During the night, the chief expenditure of the system--by perspiration,
urine, and exhalation from the lungs--is of a fluid nature, and hence
there is a marked and general preference of fluids as part of our first
meal. In this country, accordingly, tea, coffee, and chocolate, are in
almost universal use for breakfast, and no other liquid is required
merely as drink. If, from the mode of life or other causes, thirst be
excited in the forenoon, no valid objection can be urged against its
moderate and reasonable gratification.
The _temperature_ at which liquids are taken is a matter of
perhaps greater consequence than it is usually considered. As regards
the teeth, we have already seen that either very cold or very hot
substances coming into contact with them are apt to be injurious.
As regards the stomach, the same principle holds true; and when we
consider the multitude and intricacy of its nervous connexions with
other vital organs, we can scarcely be surprised at even sudden
death being frequently caused by drinking ice-cold water when the
body is weakened by profuse perspiration. Of the various subjects
connected with digestion on which Dr Beaumont has thrown light by his
experiments on St Martin, this is one of the few which he has omitted
to investigate with his usual diligence and accuracy; a circumstance
which is the more remarkable, because an incidental observation of his
own seems, from its singularity, to have been well calculated to direct
his attention to its consideration. On the occasion alluded to, when a
gill of water, at the temperature of 55° Fahr., was received into the
empty stomach, in which the thermometer previously indicated a heat
of 99°, Dr Beaumont remarked that it immediately diffused itself over
the interior surface, _and brought down the temperature to 70°_,
at which it stood for a few minutes, and then began again to rise very
slowly. _It was not till thirty minutes had elapsed, and all the
water been for some time absorbed, that the mercury regained its former
level of 99°._ This is an important fact, and it is curious that
Dr Beaumont did not think of following it up by a regular series of
experiments, to ascertain the effects of cold and hot drinks on the
progress of digestion and on the general system. It is well known, for
example, that a copious draught of cold water, taken in a state of
perspiration and fatigue, is often instantly fatal; but its operation
has never been satisfactorily explained. The above experiment, however,
throws some light on it; for if a single gill of water at 55° (which
is not by any means a low temperature) is able to reduce the heat of
the stomach in a moment by no less than _twenty-nine degrees_,
when neither fatigue nor perspiration is present to add to its effect,
the influence of a _large quantity_, such as is usually drunk
by harvest-labourers and others who die of it, and at a still lower
temperature, must undoubtedly be much more powerful and permanent,
especially when the bodily energies and means of resisting the shock
are impaired by previous labour and exhaustion under a burning sun.
In these cases the shock necessarily arising from such a sudden and
extensive fall of temperature is greatly increased by the position of
the stomach in the very centre of the vital organs, to all of which
it is most intimately linked by the numerous nervous connexions given
for the express purpose of extending the range and direction of its
sympathies.
Keeping in mind the great depression of temperature caused by
swallowing so small a quantity of cold water, and also the ascertained
fact that a heat of about 100° is requisite for healthy digestion,
we shall have no difficulty in accounting for the frequent injurious
consequences arising from considerable quantities of ice-cream being
hastily eaten, as they often are, at the end of a substantial dinner.
The immediate effects of the rapid abstraction of heat to which they
give rise in the stomach, are the instantaneous contraction and
diminished action of its bloodvessels, the consequent stoppage of the
gastric secretion, diminished sensibility of its nerves and muscular
fibres, and, lastly, disturbance of the heart and neighbouring vital
organs, both by sympathy and by the direct abstraction of their heat.
Such, at least, are the consequences which flow from the application
of cold to parts exposed to observation, and partially verified by
Dr Beaumont in the case of the stomach; and if the analogy holds
throughout, as there is every reason to believe, we cannot wonder that
the free use of ice-cream at the end of a good dinner or supper should
retard and even arrest digestion in a person delicately constituted.
In thus condemning the free use of ices at the end of a substantial
meal, I do not, however, mean to say that a few tea-spoonfuls of them,
eaten slowly, and allowed to acquire a higher temperature before
reaching the stomach, will do permanent injury to a person in health
and in the enjoyment of sound digestion. Many eat them in this way
and are little the worse; partly from the subsequent reaction, as in
bathing, being sufficient to counteract the depressing influence, and
partly from a person in vigorous health being able to throw off causes
of disease from which those who are less robustly constituted suffer
severely. My belief however is, that the _tendency_ of ices, taken
in such circumstances, is to produce mischief. A healthy person, for
example, may possess vigour enough to escape injury from immersion in
cold water, caused by the ice giving way when skating; but as well
might it be inferred, on that account, that a similar immersion would
be generally innocuous, and even salubrious, as that all may safely eat
ices freely because a given individual has done so with impunity. Dr
Beaumont’s experiment with the cold water shews clearly that the effect
is to _lower the vital tone_ of the stomach; and, such being
the case, those whose digestion is weak ought to be careful against
impairing it still farther by the use of ices. In some instances,
however, it is not improbable that they help to neutralize the bad
effects of hot soup, and other dishes eaten at too high a temperature.
The use of cold or iced water in hot weather and in warm climates,
_when digestion is not going on_ and _exhaustion is not present_, is
so far from being necessarily hurtful, that with proper caution it
may prove both grateful and refreshing. In Italy, accordingly, ice is
considered so much a necessary of life in summer, that in Naples and
other places the confectioners are punished by a fine if they allow
their supply to fall short. In Virginia, too, where, we are told
by Professor Dunglison, it was very common some years ago for the
labourers in the harvest-field to be killed by drinking copiously of
spring-water while overheated, cases of death have become extremely
unfrequent since the custom was introduced of supplying them with ice.
When water was taken, it was always hastily and in large quantity,
so that the immediate effect on the system was greater than could
possibly arise from the small quantity of ice which is required for
quenching thirst. The very slowness, indeed, with which ice melts,
not only prevents much being taken, but causes the water procured
from it to reach a higher and safer temperature before it arrives at
the stomach.[60] Hence, when ices are taken, the more slowly they are
eaten the more refreshing and salubrious will they become, because the
less violent will be their action upon the nerves, bloodvessels, and
membranes of the stomach. From the close sympathy existing between the
stomach, and the skin, a single tea-spoonful of ice-cream suddenly
swallowed when the body is weak and perspiring, will produce as
instantaneous a sense of chill as a pail of cold water dashed over
the surface; and on account of this very power over the vital actions
of the stomach, ice has of late been cautiously and beneficially
prescribed to subdue inflammation of that organ.
Liquids, such as soup, tea, and coffee, taken at a very high
temperature, are also injurious, but not in the same degree. They relax
the mucous membrane and weaken the action of the muscular coat, and in
so far tend to impair digestion. The fittest temperature for both solid
and liquid food is perhaps about the natural heat of the body, or a
little above 100°. Dr Dunglison, however, and some other physiologists,
regard hot fluids as stimulating to the stomach, and therefore
conducive to digestion; but he admits that debility is their ultimate
effect.
When great thirst has been excited either by bodily labour or by
external heat, it will generally be more effectually as well as safely
quenched by drinking moderately of tepid than of cold fluids. A tepid
draught--a cup of tea for example--produces no disturbing action in
the stomach, and, being immediately absorbed, supplies the deficiency
of liquid without changing the balance of the circulating fluids,
thus relieving thirst very much in the same way as Dupuytren did by
injecting tepid water into the veins; whereas cold drink, by the
suddenness of its impression, disturbs the balance of the circulation,
and excites a degree of reaction which increases the original
discomfort. If the system is at the same time weakened by fatigue, cold
drinks are always injurious.
Of late years a change in the treatment of horses in this respect has
taken place. Formerly it used to be considered dangerous to give water
to a horse in a state of perspiration. Now, however, it is a common
practice to allow post and stage-coach horses a little water before
their run is completed, however warm they may be: but, in the first
place, the quantity allowed is small, and is always given before the
strength is exhausted; and, in the second place, the excitement of
the subsequent exercise prevents any considerable disturbance in the
balance of circulation, and thus ensures the safety of the animal. If
even the same moderate quantity were given at the end of the stage,
and the horse were then allowed to rest, inflammation would almost
inevitably result.
The same principle applies to the human frame, and affords an easy
explanation of the occasional instances we see of persons _heated_
by exertion drinking cold water without injury. If the exertion have
been merely sufficient to produce _excitement without fatigue_,
and _heat without debilitating perspiration_, and especially if
it be resumed after the draught, little or no harm will ensue. But if
exhaustion or fatigue have been induced, and the individual be allowed
to drink freely of the cold water and then rest, the probability of
mischief resulting from it will be greatly increased. Many accidents
result from losing sight of this distinction, and from acting alike in
circumstances so essentially different.
On the subject of _the kind of drink_ which ought to be taken
a great deal might be said, were it necessary to discuss here the
qualities of all the liquors that are in use. But as my purpose is very
different, a few general remarks will be enough.
_Water_ is a safe drink for all constitutions, provided it be
resorted to in obedience to the dictates of natural thirst only, and
not of habit, and with the precautions already pointed out; but unless
the desire for it is felt, there is no occasion for its use during a
meal, for the mere purpose of obeying a general rule. Toast and water,
whey, beer, barley-water, aërated and soda water, and other liquids of
a similar kind, which are little stronger than pure water, may be used,
according to the same general principle, by those who prefer them and
find them agreeable to the stomach. But with regard to such fermented
liquors as porter, ale, spirits, and wine, much greater restriction is
necessary, because much good or evil may be done by them when properly
or improperly administered.
The primary effect of all distilled and fermented liquors is to
_stimulate the nervous system and quicken the circulation_. In
all conditions, therefore, in which the action of these requires to be
increased or supported, they are calculated to be useful; and, on the
contrary, where it requires to be soothed and abated, they are sure to
be prejudicial. To shew the utility of this principle as a standard, we
shall notice a few of its applications.
Among the higher classes, it is common to give children an allowance
of wine every day from a very early age. To determine the propriety of
doing so, let us examine what is then their constitutional state.
In infancy and childhood the circulation is rapid and easily excited,
and the nervous system is strongly acted upon even by the slightest
external impressions. Hence slight causes of irritation readily excite
febrile and convulsive disorders. The object of the parent, therefore,
is not to stimulate, but rather to _abate_ nervous and vascular
action. Wine, accordingly, is not only unnecessary, but _positively
detrimental to children_, and it is wrong to accustom them to it.
There are individual children, no doubt, who are so imperfectly and
sluggishly constituted as to require some stimulus to rouse the system
to healthy action, and to whom wine is beneficial as a medicine. But
these are the exceptions to the general rule, and to them it should be
given only under medical sanction.
In youth the natural tendency of the constitution is still to
excitement; and consequently, as a general rule, the stimulus of
fermented liquors is injurious. During rapid growth, however, the
animal functions are sometimes so enfeebled by the great demands made
upon them, that not only a full supply of nourishing food, but also an
allowance of wine and malt liquor, is required for a time to sustain
their energy. In this case the beneficial influence of the fermented
drinks is apparent, by their giving tone to the system without raising
the pulse or increasing nervous sensibility; but whenever any of these
effects is produced, their employment ought to be discontinued.
In mature age, when digestion is good and the system in full vigour,
if the mode of life be not too exhausting, the nervous functions
and general circulation are in their best condition, and require no
stimulus for their support. The bodily energy is then easily sustained
by nutritious food and a regular regimen, and consequently artificial
excitement only increases the wasting of the natural strength. Where,
however, the system has been long accustomed to the use of wine, it
will, in general, be better to leave it off gradually than to make
a sudden change. In old age, when the powers of life begin to fail,
moderate stimulus may be used with evident advantage.
If it be said that this doctrine amounts to a virtual prohibition of
wine and stimulant liquors, I admit at once that, where the whole
animal functions go on healthfully and energetically without them,
their use is, in my opinion, adverse to the continuance of health. But
there are many constitutions so inherently defective in energy, as to
derive benefit from a moderate daily allowance of wine; and there are
many situations in which even the healthiest derive additional security
from its occasional use. If, for example, a healthy person is exposed
to unusual and continued exertion in the open air, or to the influence
of anxious and depressing watchfulness, a moderate quantity of wine
along with his food may become the means of warding off actual disease,
and enabling him to bear up uninjured, where without it he would have
given way. This preservative influence has been so often experienced,
that it is impossible to deny its reality.
While, then, I consider stimulating liquors of every kind as both
useless and hurtful, where without them the system is healthful and
energetic, I can see no reason why their temperate use in circumstances
of an opposite nature ought to be denied. Many weak constitutions and
many invalids are benefited by wine, and all that can reasonably be
demanded is, that it shall not be abused.
Continued and severe exertion, whether of body or of mind, often
exhausts the system so much as to render the temporary use of wine,
and even of spirits, not only innocuous, but positively beneficial;
but in these cases they should be considered as medicines, and care
ought to be taken not to carry the stimulus too far. That, in some
circumstances, stimulus is really required, is accordingly shewn by the
ease with which the system bears its effects. I have known a delicate
lady, during recovery from fever, take to the extent of a bottle
of Madeira in twenty-four hours, without producing the least undue
excitement of either the mind or the pulse, but rather the contrary--it
soothed the mind and reduced the pulse; and this I take to be the true
test of its propriety in all circumstances.
The same principle explains the well-known fact that many sportsmen,
who, while living a sedentary life in town, are easily affected by
even a small quantity of spirits, yet bear triple the quantity, with
apparent impunity, under the influence of inspiriting exercise in a
pure mountain-air: on resuming their former habits, the spirits again
affect them as readily as before.
As a support to the system in cases which require it, wine is in
general far preferable to spirits of any description. The former, when
seasonably used, communicates a more healthful and permanent tone to
the frame; while spirits impart a strong and unnatural stimulus, which
is sooner or later followed by collapse and debility--and hence the
incessant craving for more when the system has once been accustomed to
them. Ardent spirits, therefore, ought to be used only as a medical
remedy. At present, however, this is so far from being the case, that
they are resorted to on all occasions, afflictive and convivial,
as if they were a specific against every evil. Among the poor,
especially, whisky or gin is considered a sovereign remedy for every
disease. Even to infants it is administered with a recklessness which
savours strongly of barbarism, and the consequences are as might be
expected--deplorable. Among the higher classes, too, brandy and strong
stimuli are in more frequent use than they ought to be; and medical men
should be on their guard against directly or indirectly encouraging, in
their patients, a practice so utterly destructive to both physical and
moral happiness. For, in some instances, it is to be feared that the
stimulant bitters and anti-spasmodics, so generally had recourse to in
indigestion and nervous diseases, have had an unsuspected share in the
formation of a habit of intemperance.
Of late years, great exertions have been made, both in this country and
in America, to warn the public against indulging in the use of ardent
spirits; and powerful medical, as well as moral facts and arguments,
have been adduced to demonstrate the unspeakably greater advantages
of temperance. These efforts have been followed with astonishing
success, and the good which has been already effected is immense. It
seems to me, however, that much more might be accomplished, if we
did not confine ourselves so exclusively to the mere inculcation of
abstinence from intoxicating liquors, but concerned ourselves more in
improving the general character, as the surest road to reformation, and
in providing resources by means of which the reformation, when once
effected, might be fully confirmed. The temperance which is produced
by elevation of mind, and an improved state of moral feeling, will
be not only much more beneficial in its consequences, but infinitely
more proof against temptations, than that which is observed merely in
fulfilment of a vow; and unless something be made to come in the place
of the enjoyment which is withdrawn, the danger of a relapse will
continue to be great. The importance of this principle is perhaps not
sufficiently recognised in the otherwise valuable labours of Temperance
Societies.
Many persons imagine that spirits, taken in moderate quantity, cannot
be injurious, _because they feel no immediate bad effects from their
use_. If the fundamental principle which I have advanced is sound,
and if all the functions of the system are already vigorously executed
_without_ the aid of spirits, their use can be followed by only
one effect--_morbid excitement_; and it is in vain to contend
against this obvious truth. The evil attending their unnecessary use
may not be _felt_ at the moment, but nevertheless it is there;
and for demonstrative proof of the fact, we are again indebted to Dr
Beaumont. On examining St Martin’s stomach after he had been indulging
freely in ardent spirits for several days, Dr Beaumont found its
mucous membrane covered with _erythematic_ (inflammatory) _and
aphthous_ (ulcerous) _patches_, the secretions vitiated, and
the gastric juice diminished in quantity, viscid, and unhealthy;
although St Martin still _complained of nothing_, not even of
impaired appetite. Two days later, when the state of matters was
aggravated, “_the inner membrane of the stomach was unusually morbid,
the erythematic appearance more extensive, the spots more livid than
usual; from the surface of some of them exuded small drops of grumous
blood; the aphthous patches were larger and more numerous,--the
mucous covering thicker than common, and the gastric secretions much
more vitiated. The gastric fluids extracted were mixed with a large
proportion of thick ropy mucus, and a considerable muco-purulent
discharge slightly tinged with blood, resembling the discharge from
the bowels in some cases of dysentery_. Notwithstanding this
diseased appearance of the stomach, no very essential aberration of
its functions was manifested. St Martin complained of no symptoms
indicating any general derangement of the system, except an uneasy
sensation and a tenderness at the pit of the stomach, and some
vertigo, with dimness and yellowness of vision, on stooping down and
rising again; had a thin yellowish-brown coat on his tongue, and his
countenance was rather sallow; pulse uniform and regular, appetite
good; rests quietly, and sleeps as usual.”[61]
I have marked part of this quotation in italics, because it cannot be
too attentively considered by those who contend that the stimulus of
spirits is not injurious to the stomach or general health, unless
where the mischief shews itself by palpable external signs. Here we
have incontestible proof, that disease of the stomach was induced, and
going on from bad to worse, in consequence of indulgence in ardent
spirits, although no prominent symptom made its appearance, and St
Martin was in his general habits a healthy and sober man. And if such
be the results of a few days of intemperance in a person of a sound
constitution, it is impossible to deny that continued indulgence must
be followed by more serious evils, whether these shew themselves from
the first by marked external signs or not.
After a few days of low diet and the use of mild diluents, the coats
of St Martin’s stomach were seen to resume their healthy appearance;
the secretions became natural, the gastric juice clear and abundant,
and the appetite voracious. Dr Beaumont adds, that, in the course of
his experiments, diseased appearances of a similar kind were frequently
observed--generally, but not always, after some appreciable cause.
“Improper indulgence in eating and drinking has been the most common
precursor of these diseased conditions of the coats of the stomach.
_The free use of ardent spirits, wine, beer, or any intoxicating
liquor, when continued for some days, has invariably produced these
morbid changes. Eating voraciously or to excess, swallowing food
coarsely masticated or too fast_,” “almost invariably produce
similar effects, if repeated a number of times in close succession.”
(P. 239.) These observations require no comment; their practical
bearing must be obvious to all who are willing to perceive it.
Dr Beaumont had also frequent occasion to remark, that, when stomachic
disorder attended with febrile symptoms were present, the mucous coat
of the stomach presented distinct appearances of disease. He frequently
saw it, for example, red, irritable, and dry; and on the food touching
it _no gastric juice exuded_, and consequently any food taken
lay long undigested. But after the diseased action was subdued by
regimen and medicine, the gastric juice again flowed readily, and
digestion went on as vigorously as before. Even anger and violent
mental emotions sometimes produced these appearances, and gave rise to
temporary indigestion. These observations shew the futility, not to
say mischief, of administering food during fever and other diseases
by way of supporting the strength, when, from the deficiency of the
gastric juice, it cannot be digested, and can only add to the existing
irritation. In this state, however, bland fluids are appropriate;
because they allay irritation, and are almost entirely absorbed,
without requiring to be digested.
The condition of the stomach above described, and the consequent
failure and vitiation of the gastric secretion, induced by drinking
ardent spirits, and by general intemperance, explain at once the
miserable digestion and impaired appetite of the habitual drunkard; and
it would be well for those who are in danger of becoming the victims of
the habit, were they early impressed with some of these striking and
important truths.
* * * * *
If it be asked, whether I go the length of proscribing all fermented
liquors, from table-beer upwards, I answer that I do not; I merely
mean, that, where the general health is perfect without them, they
ought not to be taken, because then their only effect is to produce
unnatural excitement. But wherever the constitution or health is
so deficient, or the exertions required by the mode of life are so
great, that the system cannot be sustained in proper vigour without
some additional stimulus, I would not only sanction but recommend
the use of either wine or such other fermented liquor as should be
found by experience to support the strength, _without quickening
the circulation, exciting the mind, or disordering the digestive
functions_. If, however, any of these effects be produced, I would
consider its occurrence as a proof that the stimulus is inappropriate,
and cannot be too soon discontinued, or at least diminished to such a
quantity as shall be consistent with the ordinary action of the animal
functions.
It may be alleged that a glass of brandy after a heavy dinner
facilitates digestion, and therefore cannot do harm. I admit at once,
that, when we eat too much, or fill the stomach with indigestible food,
a dram of brandy, from its temporary stimulus, enables us to get rid
of the load sooner than we could do without it. But it seems to me,
that a far wiser plan would be, to abstain from eating what we know
to be oppressive to the stomach; and that, by this means, we shall
attain our end infinitely better, than by first eating a heavy meal and
then, taking a stimulus, the efficacy of which is diminished by every
repetition of its use. If we were _compelled_ to exceed the bounds
of moderation in eating, there would be some apology for our conduct.