I propose to deal with this subject in the light of present-day experience and knowledge, reflecting, to begin with, the medical opinion of to-day and afterwards that of the general public, and I propose to divide my theme into two sections: Firstly, the evident meaning attached to my title, viz., the different forms of mental abnormality resulting from excessive drinking in the individual, and secondly, the different mental states exhibited, or the different points of view adopted by the community responsible for the methods of its sale and use, and, as a consequence, for the maintenance of public order. In dealing with the latter section I shall pass in review the different legal measures that have been adopted to control its sale and the various steps that have been taken to safeguard the health of the people in connection with it.