embrane of the nose, than violent sneezing is produced.
This is the effort of the besieged nerves and blood vessels to protect
themselves. A bit of tobacco taken into the mouth causes salivation
because the salivary glands recognize the enemy and yield an increased
flow of their precious fluid to wash him away. Taken into the stomach
unaccustomed to its presence, and it produces violent vomiting. The
whole lining membrane of that much-abused organ rebels against such an
Intruder, and tries to eject him. Tobacco dust and smoke taken into
the lungs at once excretes a mucous-like fluid in the mouth, throat,
windpipe, bronchial tubes, and in the lungs themselves. Excretions such
as this mean a violent wasting away of vitality and power. Taken in
large quantities into the stomach, tobacco not only causes an excretion
of mucus from the mouth, throat, and breathing organs, but it produces
an overtaxing of the liver; that is, this organ overworks in order to
counteract the presence of the poison. But one asks, If tobacco is so
injurious, why is it used with such apparent pleasure? A small quantity
of tobacco received into the system by smoking, chewing, or snuffing is
carried through the circulation to the skin, lungs, liver, kidneys, and
to all the organs of the body, by which it is moderately resisted. The
result is a gentle excitement of all these organs. They are in a state
of morbid activity. And as sensibility depends upon vital action of
the bodily organisms, there is necessarily produced a degree of
sense gratification or pleasure. The reason why these sensations are
pleasurable instead of painful is, in this state of moderate excitement
the circulation is materially increased without being materially
unbalanced. But as with every sense indulgence, when the craving for
increased doses becomes satisfied, when larger doses are taken the
circulation becomes unbalanced, vital resistance centers in one point,
congestion occurs, then the sensation becomes one of pain instead of one
of pleasure. This disturbance or excitement caused by tobacco is nothing
more nor less than disease. For it is abnormal action, and abnormal
action is fever, and fever is disease. It is state on good authority,
"that no one who smokes tobacco before the bodily powers are developed
ever makes a strong, vigorous man." Dr. H. Gibbons says: "Tobacco
impairs digestion, poisons the blood, depresses the vital powers, causes
the limbs to tremble, and weakens