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“For Health’s Sake”
By MEDICAL ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
MORPHINISM
Morphinism may be defined as an
artificially produced toxic condition
generated by the prolonged use of
opium, or one of its derivatives, such
as morphine or heroin. It has been
estimated that about 50,000 persons
in the United States are morphine
habitues. This is an average of one
twentieth of one per cent of the
population, and the proportion of ad
dicts is about the same in both urban
and rural communities throughout
the nation. At the present time, in
the same city, with a population of
over 350,000 the number of addicts
is probably not over 200. In rural
communities and in small towns the
proportion of addicts has declined to
about the same ratio. In other words,
both in cities and in rural sections,
morphinism has declined ninety-fve
per cent since the passage of the
Narcotic Act, while the majority of
the remaining unfortunates are dis
eased individuals. It may also be
stated that the morphine habit is
still decreasing which is due, in a
large measure, to difficulty in obtain
ing the drug and the unusual care
exercised by physicians in writing
prescriptions for narcotics.
When a person, either in a state
of health or sickness, is given mor
phine in therapeutic doses two or
three times a day for a period of two
weeks and then has the drug sud
denly discontinued, he suffers from
intense nervousness, weakness, rest
lessnes and often aching of the joints
and muscles. These discomforts oc
cur regardless of whether or not the
patient has a knowledge of the drug
he has been taking. The above state
may be defined as mild morphine
habituation, and, if the administra
tion of the drug is stopped, the with
drawal symptoms will last about two
days, after which time the patient is
comfortable. If such patient is a
neurotic or if his disease is painful,
only the physician knows the diffi
culty in discontinuing the “easing
medicine.” These patients will de
mand of their doctors a medicine to
give them relief and nothing will re
lieve them except morphine. Probably
fifty per cent of all cases of addic
tion commence in the way described
above; that is, by the administration
of morphine on account of some ill
ness. Alcoholics sometimes become
addicts to morphine by “sobering up
with a hypodermic.” The habit is
occasionally acquired by association.
The writer k,nows a family of eleven
where all became habitues. The
children, as they matured, learned
from their parents that morphine
would ease headaches and pain, and
each one became an addict. Asso
ciations among those in the “under
world”, also frequently lead to mor
phinism and the narcotic “bootleg
gers” usually belong to this group.
When a person takes opium or
morphine, either by mouth or hypo
dermically, for a period of three or
four months, he becomes a morphine
habitue. Such patients usually show
a rather distinctive facial pallor as
sociated with contracted pupils, which
gives a rather characteristic appear
ance, so much so in fact that the
condition can often be diagnosed by
observation alone. There are excep
tions to this rule, however, as some
retain a florid complexion and in a
few the pupils contract very little.
The morphine habitue is secretive in
regard to his habit and will frequent
ly deny to hs relatives that he is
taking the drug. When he presents
himself for treatment, however, he
Tax Commissioner’s
Dates—
W/AWM
I will be at the following places on the dates nam
ed for the purpose of collecting Taxes. Please meet
me promptly:
ARLINGTON NOVEMBER 3
JAKIN NOVEMBER 4
NICKELSVILLE NOVEMBER 5, A. M.
NEWBERRY’S STORE NOVEMBER 5, P. M.
DAMASCUS NOVEMBER 10 AND 2<
ROWENA NOVEMBER 11
LUCILE NOVEMBER 12
HILTON NOVEMBER 17
CEDAR SPRINGS NOVEMBER 18
MOCK’S STORE NOVEMBER 19
COLOMOKEE NOVEMBER 24 A M.
McArthur jones’ store November 24, p.m.
BURKETT’S STORE NOVEMBER 26
My books will close December 20, 1937, after
which executions will be issued.
J. L. HOUSTON,
Tax Commissioner, Early County, Ga.
| talks freely to his physician and will
give all details about the formation
iof the habit. When under the in
fluence of the drug he is mildly ex
urbant and carefree. Morphine seems
to renumb, to some extent, the sense
of reality. When the habit is first
started, the feeling of elation and the
sensations experienced are quite
pleasant, but as the demand for the
drug grows, the quantity necessary to
produce these sensations become
larger and in a short time the habitue
finds that he is using from six to
eight grains of morphine per day.
The majority of patients stabilize on
about this amount. Morphine pa
tients have a tendency to exaggerate
■ their aches and pains. Many become
I selfcentered, and they talk constant-
I ly about themselves and the drug they
are using. Some have a tendency to
, fabricate, while others are quite
honorable. Some will stay in bed for
; weeks at a time, enjoying day dreams
and the fantastic ideas that float
through their consciousness.
Withdrawal Symptoms: In from
twelve to twenty-four hours after
the drug has been suddenly with
! drawn, the habitue suffers from in
i tense nervousness, insomnia and from
pains and aches in various parts of
I the body. There is also marked sen
; sitiveness of the special senses and
i of the skin. A cross word or a sud
! den noise may cause an outburst of
J temper, over which the patient has
no control. There may be dian-hoea,
sweating, and in the old and infirm,
I symptoms of collapse, often requir
ing the administration of morphine
to sustain life. In the young and
healthy, the sudden withdrawal of
morphine seldom produces alarming
symptoms so far as danger to life is
concerned. When the drug is grad
ually withdrawn the symptoms are
not so severe, but are more prolong
ed, and even in these cases when the
last dose is given, although the
quantity be very minute, the nerv
ousness, restlessness and irritability
are quite marked.
The prognosis depends largely on
the facilities the patient has of ob
taining the drug, though there are
exceptions. Many physicians cured
of the habit twenty years ago are
still well, yet it is evident that they,
as doctors have easy access to the
drug. When a person becomes an
habitue on account of some painful
disease from which he completely re
covers, the prognosis is good, provid
ed the first treatment is thorough
and complete. Neurotics seldom re
main permanently cured. The aged
and infirm, even if taken off the
drug, almost invariably relapse, as
life is so miserable without the sooth
ing effect of ther accustomed medi
cine that it is hardly worth living.
When the morphine patient pre
sents himself for treatment, it is im
portant to determine the prospects of
a cure. Habitues over sixty-five
years of age usually are incurables,
especially if they have been taking
the drug for a period of several
years. Patients with severe hyper
thyroidism, tuberculosis, degenerative
myocarditis, and marked arterioscler
osis should be allowed to continue
the use of the drug. In case of can
cer with marked pain, or in patients
with tabes dorsalis, treatment should
not be instituted. Some habitues,
even without evidence of organic dis
ease, have a nervous system so deli
cately balanced that a cure is im
possible. A few of these patients will
collapse under treatment and, unless
morphine is administered, will die.
For successful 'treatment, mor
phine habitues should be placed in an
institution under the supervision of
a skilled physician. It is also essen-
EARLY COUNTY NEWS, BLAKELY, GEORGIA
ECONOMIC
HIGHLIGHTS
Happening* That Affect the Din
ner Pail*, Dividend Check* and
Tax Bill* of Every Individual.—
National and International Prob
lems Inseparable from Local
Welfare.
If a president sumbits a legisla
tive program to a congress, and it is
defeated or tabled in whole or in
part, he has several choices of future
courses of action. He can use the
immense power of the presidency in
an attempt to influence senators and
representatives who oppose him—
something that has been done many
times, with varying success, ever
since patronage became a major poli
tical weapon. Or he can accept his
defeat with more or less equanimity,
as Hoover did when confronted by
an unfriendly House after the elec
tion of 1930, and trust to time to
prove him right or wrong. Or he
can “go to the people” with his pro
gram, and try to muster sufficient
strength in his support to sway the
congress—which always keeps an ear
to the ground.
On at least two previous occasions,
presidents—faced with splits in their
own partes over major policies—have
gone to the people. Taft did in 1919,
when the Payne-Aldrich tariff bill,
which all but closed America to im
ports, was passed, and resulted in
the defection of many prominent Re
publicans from the Administration.
Taft failed, the Republican Bull
Moose followed, and in the next elec
tion the President received the worst
beating ever taken by an incumbent,
carrying but two small states.
Then came Wilson and the League
of Nations issue. The Senate refused
to ratify American participation in
the League—and the war President,
fresh from his European triumph, de
termined on a swing around the coun
: try. The tragic results of this are
j history—Wilson collapsed physically
jat Wichita, and from then on until
I his death, was a sick man.
And now, in the view of practically
j every newsman, President Roosevelt
l after a Congress which turned down
one of the most far-reaching Adminis
tration programs in our history, has
also gone to the country. As Jay
Hayden writes, “The one thing that
can be said with reasonable certainty
respecting President Roosevelt’s na
tion-wide swing is that it is primarily
concerned with the rebellion of con
gressional Democrats. . .”
Men close to the White House say
the defeat of the Court bill rankles
bitterly in the President’s mind. He
regards it as essential to his objec
tives. And it is widely believed that
he intended to talk in support of the
bill in the bailiwicks of its Democrat
opponents, such as Wheeler and O’-
Mahoney. The fact that he did not
i refer to it is credited to the Black
Ku Klux Klan disclosures, which
forced a change of plan. It is felt
that the President’s future declara
tions on the subject will be deferred
until it can be determined what will
be the country’s reaction to the Black
appointment, and Black’s radio speech
in which he admitted past Klan mem-
I bership and at the same time declared
| his faith in racial and religious free
i dom.
| Furthermore, Presidential advisors
fear that there may have occurred
a serious loss in the Executive’s pub
lic popularity. A Fortune survey in
dicates that he has lost supporters
lin all the economic divisions, and
I that the great part of this loss follow
ed the Court bill fight. But the tide
,of public thought can change fast,
and the Administration hopes that
’ any losses can be repaired, and that
j the best cure lies in Mr. Roosevelt
. making himself seen and heard by as
I many voters as possible—especially
in the Mountain and Pacific Coast
| states, where, it is thought, losses
have been most serious.
A reporter on the Presidential
j train recently wrote that all the ex
i perts aboard felt sure that the Presi
dent plans on calling a special ses
sion of Congress this November. Main
object of the session will be farm
legislation—an apparently large and
vocal part of agriculture seems to
want a new AAA. If the Administra
■ tion thinks the time is right, and if
the hoped for change in pubic senti
' ment follows the tour, the Court
1 bill will likewise be introduced again
lin the special session. Otherwise it
| will be held over until January.
So on the one hand the Adminis
itration finds its standing in the pub
lic eye materially below the level at
tained last year. On the other, as po
litical realists point out, the magni-
I tude of Federal unemployment and
farm relief activities has created a
vast army which is financially under
; obligations to the New Deal. Also
. important, in the view of some ex
perts, is the fact that there is no out
standing opponent of the President
j— no Republican has shown that he
i can exert any real pull on the voters.
An opposition without good leader
ship always faces hard going.
“Business lumbered along with a
heavy foot this week,” says Business
Week. That is true of all recent
weeks. There have been few impor
tant setbacks in production. There
has been a setback in sentiment, due
Ito the market slump.
General consensus seems to be that
; there has been a halt in the pre
viously fast march of recovery, but
that no major new drop is to be ex
pected.
tial for them to receive efficient
'nursing and custodial care for sev
-1 era! weeks and in some instances
| several months.
DAMASCUS ITEMS
(Intended for last week)
Girlhood friends of Mrs. Martin
Sease will be indeed sorry to learn
of her death, which occured Wed
nesday afternoon in Savannah, Ga.,
following a long illness. Mrs. Sease
is better known in the Damascus
community as lone Morgan, the sec
ond daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James
H. Morgan. She spent most of her
childhood here, in which time she
made many friends. Although she
was in Macon, Ga., a few years prior
to her marriage to Mr. Sease, she
made frequent visits here to rela
tives and friends. Mr. Sease was
employed by the Seaboard Co., be
ing transferred after their marriage
to Savannah, where they were living
at the time of her death. Mrs. Sease
is survived by five sisters, Mrs. Fred
Chetti of Macon, Mrs. Eskell Fussel
of Hawkinsville, Ga., Mrs. Dr. Spring
er of Birmingham, Ala., Mrs. Anod
Harrison of Macon, Ga., and Miss
Edith Morgan of Savannah, Ga., and
one brother, Earl M. Morgan, of the
United States Coast Guards near
Miami. Fla., where he is now station
ed. Mrs. Sease’s mother preceded
her to the grave several years ago,
but her father still resides here and
brings a very pathetic report of her
splendid courage, her never-ceasing
faith in God, despite her long suf
fering. Friends of Mr. Morgan ex
tend their most heart felt sympathy
in his bereavement, and will join him
in missing lone’s coming again.
Mr. Clifford Crumbley. of the U.
S. Army, Ft. Benning, Ga., is visit
ing his mother, Mrs. Harriett Crumb
ley, at present.
Messrs. Buddie Webb and Happy
Hodges spent this week end in Jack
sonville, Fla. They were accom
panied on their return by Mrs. Bud
die Webb and children, Barbara and
: Guy, who have been visiting in
Miami several days.
Miss Francis Harrison is visiting
her uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs.
H. P. Pritchett, in Bainbridge, this
week.
Mr. and Mrs. J. O. Ferguson, Miss
Lota and Woodie Snipes, of Edison,
were guests of Mrs. Eloise Lawhorne
Tuesday afternoon.
Friends and acquaintances regret
to learn of Mrs. Clarence Mc-
Arthur’s accident with a meat slicer
last week, in which she unfortunate
ly lost a finger.
Mils. Johnnie S. Sirmons ami
children, were guests of the former’s
sister, Mrs. L. A. Phillips, last week.
Miss Elizabeth Ferguson and Mrs.
W. B. Pierce, of Edison, visited in
Albany Tuesday.
Mr. and Mrs. C. L. Peek were
visitors in Richland last week.
At Your Best!
Free From Constipation
Nothing beats a clean system for
health!
At the first sign of constipation,
take purely vegetable Black-Draught
for prompt relief.
Many men and women say that Black-
Draught brings such refreshing relief. By
its cleansing action, poisonous effects ot
constipation are driven out; you soon
feel better, more efficient.
Black-Draught costs less than most other
Invo fl vpq
BLACK-DRAUGHT
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Blakely Live Stock
YARDS
- PAYS WITHIN -
25 Points
of
Packing House
Boad for Your
CATTLE AND HOGS
We Invite Your Patronage.
HILTON JONES, Prop.
Located on Fort Gaines Street
■ jWir
v • W'. g 1’
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Twenty per cent more power! That’s the plus
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There’s unbeatable economy in the other Farmalls,
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Let us show you other advantages of these tractors.
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Blakely, : Georgia