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RE: [DL] Let's talk about drugs...
Oh my my my. Victorian Drug use. I did some research on this for my upcoming story "Childe Nicodemus to the Dark Tower Came."
ahem.
Morphine, laudanum, heroin, and opium are all opiates--coming from the opium poppy. OPium is a good, general euphoric, and pain killer, and by the time the Civil War rolled around, it was discovered that its derivative, morphine, was a painkiller so far unsurpassed by modern medicine. The Civil War also taught America about drug addiction--some 400,000 men emerged from the war addicted to morphine--the Gulf War syndrome of its day.
Laudanum is a tincture of opium--just a little, generally mixed with some alcohol, to help you calm down and go to sleep. Many children were 'settled into their beds' with laudanum for several decades. Huge numbers of women were addicted to their nightcap. There were also patent medicines--one was 90% alcohol with a little cocaine to top it off--that were just as addictive. After a tough day, a little pick-me-up to make you feel better, right? Only the cure became the disease--when you suffered from withdrawal symptoms, it was time to take your medicine again. Made loads of money for medicine sellers.
Heroin was developed in Germany in the 1895, but it would take another three years before it was latched onto by the Bayer company as a substitute for morphine addiction.
Absinthe, "The green fairy" is a frighteningly green substance made from wormwood. It induces fantastic and strange visions, due to being a neurotoxin. This is definitely an "Alice in Wonderland" sort of drug--things are strange, sensations are very unusual. Think a lower-grade LSD for the last century. It was traditionally served with water and a cube of sugar; the sugar cube was placed on an "absinthe spoon" and the liquor was drizzled over the sugar into the glass of water. The sugar helped take the bitter edge from the absinthe; when poured into the water, the liquor turned milky white. This is definitely a civilised person's drink--mostly European. Considering what they drank in the Old West, you probably won't encounter too many absinte drinkers who aren't wealthy and Eurpoean, or at least affecting it.
Since there wasn't even the concept of a 'controlled substance' until the 1900's, all of these things were legal. There were various campaigns against them, as well as alcohol, and individual places could and did ban consumption or use of such things locally. But major metropolitan areas of course had lots of users. San Francisco, however, banned the smoking of opium, excelt in Chinatown. How this works in Shan Fan, I don't know. Interestingly, many users had their own "works"; their own silver needle and lovingly-decorated injector. Often, these things came in laquer boxes, with velvet interiors. Why shoot up with something ugly and industrial, when you can get something pretty?
Plug your preferred drug and "history" into Google, and you'll get a lot of really interesting information. Druglibrary.org is very useful, but it can be difficult to wade through the mass of information.
Drug addiction. Heh. Loads of fun. Is he Harrowed, or just on heroin?
John Goodrich
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