Absinthe.

Manawatu Herald, 27 December 1900, Page 2

Absinthe.

As the French Chamber of Deputes has adopted a Bill providing for the total prohibition of the use of absinthe, it may be interesting to note some particulars of this common French drink. Absinthe is the abbreviation of extrait d' absinthe, or extract of absinthium, the common name of a highly aromatio liquer of in opaline-green colour and bitter taste.

It is prepared by steeping in alcohol or strong tpirifc bitter bedKr,tb» chief of which are ArUm/axa Absinthuim A mviellina and A. spicata] the liquor so flavoured is then redistilled. It is considered tonic and stomachic. Its excessive use produces a morbid condition differing somewhat from ordinary alcoholism. Vertigo and epileptiform convulsions are marked symptoms, and hal ucinations occur without other symptoms of delirium tremens. The use of it prevailed at one time among the French soldiers in Algiers, but it is now forbidden throughout the French army.

The most common way of preparing it for drinking is by pouring it into water drop by drop or allowing it to trickle through a funnel with a minute opening ; so prepared it is called la hustard*, and is common in the cafes of France, Italy, and Switzerland.