drink, it does
not destroy the corpuscles so quickly, but it injures them so that they
are not able to do their work of absorbing and carrying oxygen well.
This is one reason why the faces of men who use alcoholic drinks often
look so blue.

~10. Alcohol Overworks the Heart.~--Dr. Parkes, a very learned English
physician, took the pains to observe carefully the effects of alcohol
upon the heart of a soldier who was addicted to the use of liquor. He
counted the beats of the soldier's pulse when he was sober; and then
counted them again when he was using alcohol, and found that when the
soldier took a pint of gin a day his heart was obliged to do one fourth
more work than it ought to do.

~11. Effects of Alcohol upon the Blood-Vessels.~--If you put your hands
into warm water, they soon become red. This is because the blood-vessels
of the skin become enlarged by the heat, so that they hold more blood.
Alcohol causes the blood to come to the surface in the same way. It is
this that causes the flushed cheeks and the red eyes of the drunkard.
Sometimes, after a man has been using alcohol a long time, the
blood-vessels of his face remain enlarged all the time. This makes his
nose grow too fast, and so in time it gets too large, and then he has a
rum-blossom.

~12. Effects of Tobacco on the Heart and the Blood.~--When a boy first
tries to use tobacco, it makes him feel very sick. If you should feel
his pulse just then, you would find it very weak. This means that the
heart is almost paralyzed by the powerful poison of the tobacco. Tobacco
also injures the blood corpuscles.

~13.~ _Tea_ and _coffee_ also do their share of mischief to the heart.
Those who use them very strong often complain of palpitation, or heavy
and irregular beating of the heart.

~14. Taking Cold.~--People usually "catch cold" by allowing the
circulation to become disturbed in some way, as by getting the feet wet,
being chilled from not wearing sufficient clothing, sitting in a
draught, and in other similar ways. It is very important for you to know
that a cold is a serious thing, and should be carefully avoided.

~15. Hemorrhage~ (hem'-or-rhage) ~or Loss of Blood.~--A severe loss of
blood is likely to occur as the result of accidents or injuries of
various sorts, and it is important to know what to do at once, as there
may not be time to send for a doctor before it will be too late to save
the injured person's life. Here are a few things to be remem