xcess of fat
will make it disagree with a very delicate stomach.

_Alcohol_ is last upon our list, and scientific men are still uncertain
whether or not it can in any degree be considered as a food; but we have
no room for the various arguments for and against. You all know, in part
at least, the effects of intemperance; and even the moderate daily drinker
suffers from clouded mind, irritable nerves, and ruined digestion.

This is not meant as an argument for total abstinence; but there are cases
where such abstinence is the only rule. In an inherited tendency to drink,
there is no other safe road; but to the man or woman who lives by law, and
whose body is in the best condition, wine in its many forms is a
permissible _occasional_ luxury, and so with beer and cider and the wide
range of domestic drinks. In old age its use is almost essential, but
always in moderation, individual temperament modifying every rule, and
making the best knowledge an imperative need. A little alcoholic drink
increases a delicate appetite: a great deal diminishes or takes it away
entirely, and also hinders and in many cases stops digestion altogether.
In its constant over-use the membranes of the stomach are gradually
destroyed, and every organ in the body suffers. In ales and beers there is
not only alcohol, but much nitrogenous and sugary matter, very fattening
in its nature. A light beer, well flavored with hops, is an aid to
digestion, but taken in excess produces biliousness. The long list of
alcoholic products it is not necessary to give, nor is it possible to
enter into much detail regarding alcohol itself; but there are one or two
points so important that they can not be passed by.

You will recall in a preceding chapter the description of the circulation
of the blood, and of its first passage through veins and arteries for
cleansing, before a second round could make it food for the whole complex
nervous system. Alcohol taken in excess, it has been proved in countless
experiments by scientific men, possesses the power of coagulating the
blood. The little corpuscles adhere in masses, and cannot force themselves
through the smaller vessels, and circulation is at once hindered. This,
however, is the secondary stage. At first, as many of you have had
occasion to notice, the face flushes, the eyes grow brighter, and thought
and word both come more freely. The heart beats far more rapidly, and the
speed increases in proportion to the amoun