And
the more the system is thus reduced in strength, the more craving is
the desire for that which imparts a temporary invigoration. This process
of increasing debility and increasing craving for the stimulus that
removes it, often goes to such an extreme that the passion is perfectly
uncontrollable, and mind and body perish under this baleful habit.
In this country there are three forms in which the use of such
stimulants is common; namely, _alcoholic drinks, opium mixtures_, and
_tobacco_. These are all alike in the main peculiarity of imparting that
extra stimulus to the system which tends to exhaust its powers.
Multitudes in this nation are in the habitual use of some one of these
stimulants; and each person defends the indulgence by certain arguments:
First, that the desire for stimulants is a natural propensity implanted
in man's nature, as is manifest from the universal tendency to such
indulgences in every nation. From this, it is inferred that it is an
innocent desire, which ought to be gratified to some extent, and that
the aim should be to keep it within the limits of temperance, instead
of attempting to exterminate a natural propensity.
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