Page:The Virile Powers of Superb Manhood.djvu/69

Rh It is also a well-known fact that smoking has a weakening influence upon the entire physical organism. Numerous instances have occurred where it was proven to be the direct cause of serious digestive troubles. But the most stubborn argument against the use of tobacco is the fact that all athletes in training entirely avoid it. No matter how much they have been addicted to the habit, always when the time arrives for them to begin the work which is to build the highest degree of health and strength, smoking is immediately and absolutely tabooed. Its effect on endurance is most marked, as a smoker, just as a hard drinker, after one or two strenuous efforts is usually entirely exhausted.

It is an easy matter to break the habit if the same method is adopted as advised for curing the liquor habit—that is, gradually to lessen the use day by day. (See chapter on Alcohol and Other Stimulants—Their Destructive Effects.)

The practice, too, of following accurately