8.  We Ought Not to Allow Ourselves to Become Angry.—­When a person flies into a passion he does his brain and nerves great harm.  It is really dangerous to get angry.  Persons have dropped dead instantly in a fit of anger.

9.  We should Shun Bad Habits.—­Bad habits are very hard to give up, and hence we should be careful to avoid them.  When a child learns to swear, or to use slang phrases, the brain after a while will make him swear or use bad words before he thinks.  In a similar manner other bad habits are acquired.

SUMMARY.

1.  A person without a brain or nerves would be of no more account than a vegetable.

2.  When the brain or nerves are sick they cannot perform their duties properly.

3.  To keep the brain and nerves in good health, we must take good care of the stomach and all other important organs of the body.

4.  There are many things which we may do to keep the brain and nerves strong and well.

5.  The brain needs pure blood, and so we must be careful to breathe pure air.

6.  The brain gets strength by exercise, just as the muscles do.  Hence, study is healthful, and makes the brain strong.

7.  A good memory is very necessary, but we should not try to remember everything.

8.  It is very important that we learn how to observe things closely.

9.  Exercise in the open air rests and clears the brain by helping the blood to circulate.

10.  Plenty of wholesome and simple food is necessary to keep the brain and nerves in good health.  Spices, condiments, and rich foods in general are stimulating and harmful.

11.  Plenty of sleep is needed to rest the brain and nerves.

12.  It is dangerous as well as wicked to become very angry.

13.  We should be careful to avoid forming bad habits of any sort, as they are hard to break, and often adhere to one through life.

CHAPTER XXIV.

BAD EFFECTS OF ALCOHOL UPON THE BRAIN AND NERVES.

1.  Drunkenness.—­Did you ever see a man who was drunk?  If you live in a city it is very likely that you have.  How did the drunken man behave?  Perhaps he was noisy and silly.  Perhaps he was angry and tried to pick a quarrel with some one.

2. What made the man drunk?  You say whiskey, but it may have been wine, or beer, or hard cider that he drank.  Anything that contains alcohol will make a man drunk, for it is the alcohol which does all the mischief.

3.  The Whiskey Flush.—­You can almost always tell when a man has been drinking, even when he has not taken enough to make him drunk.  You know by his flushed face and red eyes.  When a man’s face blushes from the use of alcohol, his whole body blushes at the same time.  His muscles, his lungs, and his liver blush; his brain and spinal cord blush also.