the Doctor. "Alcohol is simply derived by
fermentation, or distillation, from substances
or fluids containing sugar; in other words,
the matter of sugar, when subjected to a
certain temperature, undergoes a change, and
the elements of which the sugar was
previously composed enter into a new combination,
which constitutes the fluid named
Alcohol, or Spirits of Wine. Raymond Lully,
the achemist (thirteenth century), is said to
have given it the name of Alcohol; but the
art of obtaining it was, in that age of darkness
and superstition, kept a profound
mystery. When it became more known,
physicians prescribed it only as a medicine, and
imagined that it had the important property
of prolonging life, upon which account they
designated it 'Aqua Vitæ,' or the 'Water of
Life,' and the French, to this day, call their
Cognac 'Eau de Vie'"

"It is a remarkable circumstance," observed
the Clergyman, filling his glass, "that there
is hardly any nation, however rude and
destitute of invention, that has not succeeded
in discovering some composition of an
intoxicating nature; and it would appear, that
nearly all the herbs, and roots, and fruits on
the face of the earth have been, in some way
or other, sacrificed on the shrine of Bacchus.
All the different grains destined for the support
of man; corn of every description; esculent
roots, potatoes, carrots, turnips; grass itself,
as in Kamtschatka; apples, pears, cherries,
and even the delicious juice of the peach,
have been pressed into this service; nay, so
inexhaustible appear to be the resources of
art, that a vinous spirit has been obtained, by
distillation, from milk itself."

"Milk!" cried the merry-faced guest,
"Can alcohol be obtained from mother's
milk?"

"Very probably," continued the Clergyman,
"The Tartars and Calmucks obtain a vinous
spirit from the distillation of mares' and cows'
milk; and, as far as I can recollect, the
process consists in allowing the milk first to
remain in untanned skins, sewed together,
until it sours and thickens. This they agitate
until a thick cream appears on the surface,
which they give to their guests, and then,
from the skimmed milk that remains, they
draw off the spirit."

"Exactly so," observed the Doctor, "but it
is worthy of notice, that a Russian chemist
discovered that if this milk were deprived of
its butter and cheese, the whey, although it
contains the whole of the 'sugar of milk, will
not undergo vinous fermentation."

"These facts," observed the Host," are
interesting, but they are more curious than
useful. The alcohol, I presume, from whatever
source it be derived, is chemically the
same thing; how, then, does it happen that
some wines, containing precisely the same
quantity of alcohol, intoxicate more speedily
than others?"

"The reason," explained the Doctor, "is
simply this. We must regard all wines, even
the very wine we are drinking, not as a simple
mixture, but as a compound holding the
matter of sugar, mucilaginous, and extractive
principles contained in the grape juice, in
intimate combination with the alcohol.
Accordingly, the more quickly the real spirit is
set free from this combination, the more
rapidly are intoxicating effects produced;
and this is the reason why wines
containing the same quantity of alcohol have
different intoxicating powers. Thus, champagne
intoxicates very quickly. Now this wine
contains comparatively only a small quantity
of alcohol; but this escapes from the froth, or
bubbles of carbonic acid gas, as it reaches the
surface, carrying along with it all the aroma
which is so agreeable to the taste. The liquor
in the glass then becomes vapid. This has
been clearly proved. The froth of champagne
has been collected under a glass bell, and
condensed by surrounding the vessel with ice;
the alcohol has then been found condensed
within the glass. The object, therefore, of
icing champagne—or rather, the effect
produced by this operation—is to repress its
tendency to effervesce, whereby a smaller
quantity of alcohol is taken with each glass.
Wines containing the same quantity of alcohol
accordingly differ in their effects; nay, it is
not to the alcohol only they contain that
certain noxious effects are to be attributed,
for, as Dr. Paris clearly shows, when they
contain an excess of certain acids, a suppressed
fermentation takes place in the stomach itself,
which will cause flatulency and a great variety
of unpleasant symptoms. In fact, a fluid load
remains in the stomach, to undergo a slow
and painful form of digestion."

"But, in whatever shape you introduce it,"
remarked the Host, "whether disguised as
wine, or in the form of brandy, whiskey, or
gin-and-water, it matters not—I wish to have
a clear idea of the immediate effects of alcohol
upon the living system."

"Well! " said the Doctor, "it can very
easily be described. When you swallow a
glass let us say of brandy-and-water the
stimulating liquid, upon entering into the
stomach, excites the blood vessels and nerves
of its internal lining coat, which causes an
increased flow of blood and nervous energy to
this part. The consequence is, that the internal
membrane of the stomach becomes highly
reddened and injected, just as if inflammation
had already been produced by the
presence of the stimulant. Thus far you
probably follow me;—but this is not all—
the vessels thus excited have an absorbing
power; they suck up (as it were) and carry
directly into the stream of the circulation
a portion (at all events) of the alcohol which
thus irritates them. The result is, that
alcohol is thus mixed with the blood and
brought into immediate contact with the
minute structure of all the different organs of
the body."