Smoking, or, no smoking? That's the question / hear the late Sir Benjamin C. Brodie ; with critical observations / by "Scrutator," [sic] ; and extracts from an occasional paper of the British Anti-Tobacco Society / by Dr. Copland.

  • Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie, 1st Baronet
Date:
[1861?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Smoking, or, no smoking? That's the question / hear the late Sir Benjamin C. Brodie ; with critical observations / by "Scrutator," [sic] ; and extracts from an occasional paper of the British Anti-Tobacco Society / by Dr. Copland. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    “The empyreumatic oil of tobacco is produced by distillation of that herb at a temperature above that of boiling water. One or two drops of this oil (according to the size of the animal) placed on the tongue will kill a cat in the course of a few minutes. A certain quantity of the oil must be always circulating in the blood of an habitual smcker, and we cannot suppose that the effects of it on the system can be merely negative. Still, I am not prepared to subscribe to the opinion of those who hold that, under all circumstances, and to however moderate an extent it be practised, the smoking of tobacco is pre¬ judicial. The first effect of it is to soothe and tranquillize the nervous system. It allays the pains of hunger, and relieves the uneasy feelings produced by mental and bodily exhaustion. To the soldier who has passed the night in the trenches before a beleaguered town, with only a distant prospect of breakfast when the morning has arrived ; to the sailor, contending with the elements in a storm ; to the labourer, after a hard day’s work; to the traveller in an uncultivated region, with an insufficient supply of food, the use of a cigar or a tobacco pipe may be not only a grateful indulgence, but really beneficial. But the occa¬ sional use of it under such circumstances is a very different matter from the habit of constant smoking which prevails in certain classes of society at the present day.” The next topic which falls under review is tobacco in the blood. Had Sir Benjamin found it convenient to have given us the advantage of his knowledge of the medium through which tobacco gets into the blood, the fact would have gained strength. In the absence of this, for the sake of the young in particular, we may observe that by absorption, and in various ways, this is effected. In the mouth and tongue there are absorbents into which the poison enters, and, although smoke does not descend into the lungs, the air which passes through the mouth must obviously be impregnated with the poisonous matter which the smoke contains, and the lungs become the channels of communication to the blood. The smoker usually ejects part of the poisoned saliva, but a considerable portion descends into his stomach, and both by absorption there, and from being mixed with the other con¬ tents of the stomach, it becomes part of the chyle and blood, which is taken up by the lacteals and lymphatics. Every smoker ought to ponder the follow¬ ing observations of the late Dr. Marshall Hall:—“The smoker cannot escape the poison of tobacco, it gets into his blood and travels the whole round of his system—it weakens the brain and the whole nervous system—it interferes with the heart’s action and the general circulation, and affects every organ and fibre of the frame.” Sir Benjamin has our hearty concurrence in re¬ garding tobacco as a boon to the soldier, the sailor, and the traveller in the circumstances which he has introduced them ; but we regret that he has granted a licence to the working-man to smoke when he is tired at night. We should recommend rest and nourishment. Qy. Which is best fitted for toil the following day, the smoker or the non-smoker? and which, in the nature of things, lasts the longest? Statistics from poor-houses, hospitals, and lunatic asylums must ultimately be brought to bear on this great question. We regret Sir Benjamin’s observations about the soothing and tranquillizing effects of tobacco. Tobacconists as well as smokers, will give Sir Benjamin a vote of thanks for this antidotal prescription. That Tobacco has a soothing influence on the nerves, like all other narcotic or torpor producing poisons, cannot be doubted, and no one better knew than Sir Benjamin Brodie, the truth of the following observations:—“The grand characteristic of all narcotic substances is, their anti-vital or life-destroy¬ ing property. When they are not so highly concentrated or energetic as to destroy life instantly, they..Droduce the most powerful, and often the most J