p. 10 | A NEW INTOXICANT

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Mar 17, 1898

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 24, No. 11.

A NEW INTOXICANT.

NEARLY all the leading manufacturers of drugs are now placing upon the market various alcoholic and other preparations of kola, an Eastern drug to which is ascribed the most magical power as a brain and nerve restorer. The physiological effects of this substance show it to be closely allied to caffein, which Lehman long ago proved to be a toxic drug, and capable of producing most profound narcotic effects.

Kola is largely sold in the form of an elixir or cordial, which contains a large percentage of alcohol, and it is reasonable to believe that the temporary exhilaration produced by the use of this drug, either with or without its alcoholic mixture, will be the means of leading a large number of persons to the use of alcohol in some form, or to the employment of other narcotics; indeed, it is possible that we shall soon be called upon to treat the victims of the kola habit.

The assertion made by many, that kola is a perfectly harmless substance, is entirely erroneous. Every drug which exhilarates or narcotizes is necessarily injurious, as a natural consequence of its peculiar effect upon the brain and nervous system.—Pacific Ensign.