75
mere stimulants and tonic at leisure hours to
invigorate them, give them good appetite, sound
sleep, and men who use the drugs as safe guards
against malarious diseases.
28. Maximum quantity that a moderate habi-
tual consumer uses is:—Bhang up to 3 tolas,
price 2 pies ; ganja up to ½ tola, price 3 pies ;
charas up to ¼ tola, price 6 pies.
A habitual excessive consumer can use :—Bhang
up to 10 tolas, price 6 pies ; ganja up to 8 tolas,
price 0-1-6 ; charas up to one tola, price 0-2-0.
Among the excessive consumers there are men
seen who could use bhang up to half a seer, and
ganja and charas 5 tolas. The number of such
men is 1 per cent. I have seen a man, fakir, smok-
ing 5 tolas of ganja.
29. Dry leaves of tobacco are mixed with ganja.
With charas, smoking tobacco is mixed. Some-
times ganja and charas are both mixed together
and then smoked. With bhang, pepper, aniseed,
cucumber seeds, rose flowers, sugar and milk are
mixed. Sugar increases the intoxication and milk
suppresses its heat. Dhatura is occasionally mixed
with bhang by excessive consumers for excess of
intoxication.
30. Ganja and charas are generally used in
company ; each member takes one or two whiffs
of the smoke till the drug is burnt. Bhang is
generally used in solitude and occasionally in
company. Males generally use these drugs ;
females of low castes and women of immoral con-
duct and prostitutes of lower type also use ganja
and charas ; their number will be about 5 per cent.
Boys of 15 or 16 years of age too use the drugs
but seldom.
31. Habit is easily formed and is difficult to
break, but not so difficult as is the case with opium
or liquor. The use of drugs, like other stimu-
lants and intoxicants, have a tendency to increase
the quantity.
32. In Holi and other festival days, in marriages
and fairs, the consumption of these drugs is more
customary. The use is temperate at such occa-
sions and does not in every case lead to the form-
ation of habit. Bhang in hot weather is generally
used as a cool refreshing drink, and after hot
weather its use is given over.
There is no religious idea and social custom
regarded as essential to the use of these drugs.
But as regards bhang some have the religious idea
of regarding it as a favourite drug of god Shiva,
and worshippers of god Shiva offer bhang in wor-
ship on Shivaratri day and other occasions. With
this idea some give the name of Shiva booti to
this drug bhang.
33. The moderate use of these drugs is not con-
demned by the public ; rather is believed to be
beneficial and less injurious. The excessive use,
of course, of these drugs, of ganja and charas in
particular, is regarded as social vice among the
higher classes, but amongst the lower classes
there is no such consideration. Much is said
against the excessive use of ganja and charas, of
the latter in particular, as in the long run the
excess proves injurious. To my knowledge there
is no custom of worshipping hemp plant.
34. To the class of men who are habitual con-
sumers it will undoubtedly be source of serious
trouble and inconvenience to order discontinuance
of the use of drugs. Labourers of agricultural
class, labourers who do hard work in day or
night, in rainy and cold weathers, in water like
the boatmen, fishermen, washermen, carriers of
vol. V.
heavy loads, will not be able to do work long and
carry heavy loads or to work as hard as they can
do with the help of drugs.
The fakirs and devotees would suffer in their
religions concentration of mind. Those who use
the drugs medically would also suffer.
Total
prevention would render their lives unhappy and
miserable. The occasional consumers will not
feel much if they have to give up the use of drugs.
35. It will not be feasible to make a total pro-
hibition of the use of these drugs. If it is done
so, it is sure to lead to the recourse to other in-
toxicants, which are socially and physically more
injurious, like opium and liquor, and to illicit
consumption ; and I believe great discontent
would prevail among the consumers, though no
political danger can be apprehended. But the
excessive use of these drugs is certainly objection-
able and injurious, and it should be condemned.
I would suggest the use of charas, which is known
to be most intoxicating, and which is only used
for intoxication, may rather be totally prohibited,
or a heavy tax be laid on its import from the
foreign territories.
The prohibition of the use or making it much
dearer by heavy taxation will confine the con-
sumers to bhang and ganja, and will probably
stop some people from indulging in other intoxi-
cants—opium, liquor or the like.
36. So far as I could ascertain, drugs are not
being substituted by alcoholic drinks, but drugs on
the other hand are known to be gradually taking
the place of liquor.
40. Bhang is prescribed by native physicians
for many diseases, both for external application and
internal use. It is also used in the treatment of
cattle.
41. A moderate use of bhang or ganja, both to
habitual and occasional consumers, is beneficial
in cases (a), (b), (c), and helps a great deal in long
journeys by foot, in carrying heavy loads, in
working in cold and waters. As medicine to diar-
rhœa„ dyspepsia, cholera.
42. Moderate use of bhang is harmless.
43. Yes.
44. Bhang commences to bring on intoxication
about half an hour after ; ganja and charas pro-
duce immediate intoxication. The moderate use
is refreshing, stimulant and soothing, causes cheer-
fulness, creates appetite, brings sound sleep.
Occasional consumers feel slight headache, dull
and giddy after the intoxication is over, but habi-
tual consumers (moderate or excessive) feel no
after-effects. The intoxication of bhang and cha-
ras lasts for six hours, and of ganja three or four
hours. To habitual consumers want of subsequent
gratification causes uneasiness.
45. The moderate use of bhang does not create
any of these evils enumerated in this question,
rather removes them. Ganja and charas produce
cough, bronchitis and asthma; during intoxi-
cation mental faculties remain dull and stupefied
to some extent. Habits of immorality and de-
bauchery increase with men who use them for
luxury alone, but excessive use creates impotency
in the long run.
46. The excessive use of all these drugs is in-
jurious, it impairs constitution, injures digestion,
causes loss of appetite, creates impotency, sluggish-
ness, stupefaction of brain. Cases of insanity are
also heard to be the effects of the excessive use of
drugs, but such cases are rare in comparison to
the number of consumers. Ganja and charas in,
o2