The injurious effects resulting from the continued habitual use of tobacco may be summarized as follows: If the habit is begun very early in life (five to ten years) the mental, moral and physical development is checked or stunted. At all times the habit is apt to produce chronic dyspepsia; the heart’s action is weakened; there will be palpitation, irregularity of beat and sooner or later there is fatty degeneration; that is, there are a series of changes in the heart designated as “tobacco heart.” Those with tobacco heart cannot undergo the usual hardships and they are more apt to succumb to disease. The optic nerve and retina are acted upon, producing weakness and dimness of vision known as “tobacco amblyopia,” which may result in total blindness. The mental powers are lessened; there will develop various neuroses, twitchings, tremblings of hands, etc. One of the most common results is “smokers’ sore throat,” which cannot be cured unless the use of tobacco is discontinued. Medicinally tobacco is but rarely used now. With non-smokers it is useful to relieve asthma. Formerly it was quite extensively employed in spasmodic affections and in parasitic skin diseases. Tobacco will be excluded from the next issue of the United States Pharmacopœia. A few words in regard to anti-tobacco and anti-cigarette crusades. They are too generally conducted by those who in their efforts approach the fanatical and who are greatly lacking in scientific learning and who therefore cannot present the subject in a rational and effective manner. If parents will set a good example and teach the true injurious effects of tobacco and tobacco habits to their sons and daughters, they will in all probability not be tempted to use tobacco. All children need careful watching by intelligent parents in order to keep them from acquiring bad habits. This does not apply more nor less to a possible acquisition of the tobacco habit than to any other habit. An illy fed, neglected boy, who is allowed to roam the streets and gutters, who chooses his own companions and who never receives any good advice or kind words from any one, will very likely learn to smoke, besides acquiring other bad habits. Albert Schneider. Among the beautiful pictures That hang on memory’s wall, Is one of a dim old forest, That seemeth best of all. —Alice Carey Transcriber’s Notes --Created an eBook cover from elements within the issue. --Reconstructed the Table of Contents (originally on each issue’s cover). --Retained copyright notice on the original book (this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.) --Silently corrected a few palpable typos. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Birds and Nature, Vol. 12 No. 1 [June 1902], by Various