187
who take it to keep off pain and disease, would
become at once liable to such things.
35. In my opinion it would not be possible.
The drug would be consumed illicitly. I do not
see how the prohibition could be enforced. Pre--
venting the cultivation of hemp might be the
best way. The prohibition would occasion seri--
ous discontent, especially among fakirs. Whe--
ther this would be a political danger or not it
is difficult to say. Per se, I should say not, and
beyond that I do not feel able to give an opi--
nion. Judging by analogy, I think that opium
or alcohol would be substituted for hemp drugs.
36. No.
37. Charas is not smoked here.
38. Not as far as I could learn.
39. One Hospital Assistant says smoking is
more injurious than eating; another says it is
less. I could not find out myself.
40. Yes; I believe it is. Two good native
doctors have replied to the questions from Cud-
dapah, and I presume they have fully answered.
I append a copy of the Chitvel Hospital Assist-
ant's answer for the convenience of reference
: - -
"Yes; prescribed for bronchitis, mixed with
sugar or jaggery; for diarrhœa, mixed with
tonic and sugarcandy; for colic, mixed with
impure salt (common), potass nitras, aconite root
and betel leaf juice; for general nervine tonic,
mixed with nutmeg, saffron, and musk in pills;
for sleep producing, pul, nux vomica, dhatura
seed, nutmeg, cardamom and cinnamon bark in
pills; for cattle diseases; for general tonic and
milk secretion, ganja one part (sazzalee), kambu
one seer, well ground and mixed with jaggery,
administered in balls; for pneumonia, ganja
one part, and dried and well washed dogskull
leaves two parts, mixed and administered in
pills; for belly ache for buffaloes, flowers of
the male plant are used in pills mixed with
jaggery."
41. (a), (b) and (c) Yes. All moderate habitual
consumers. Here again I give the Chitvel Hos--
pital Assistant's answer to this question:—
" (d) Creates temporary vigour and laughter,
specially native regimental classes, some lower
orders, boatmen, ascetics, beggars, bairagis,
Maharata vagabonds. All these use them to a
smaller or greater extent for (a), (b), (c), and (d).
The ascetics use them for intoxicating purposes
also. The moderate habitual use that I refer to
both the abovenamed. As for the moderate
occasional use, it is used for medicinal purposes
with baneful effects by a small minority of all
classes."
42. I think the use of it bad, as it engenders
the necessity of using it to give sleep, to give
appetite, etc. That it is harmful also I should
gather from the general thinness of the smokers
I interviewed. On the other hand, one consumer
assured me he has regularly used ganja from the
time of the great Nandana famine, 62 years ago,
and he by no means looked the age that would
have made him.
43. They are so. Even if intoxicated, they
go to sleep, and do not become quarrelsome.
44. The first effect appears to be one of re-
freshment and of pleasant mild intoxication. In
the habitual consumers it allays hunger; in the
moderate it creates it. The effects last an hour
or two. The after-effects are a feeling of ex--
haustion.
vol vi
45. My enquiries elicited that the habitual
moderate use emaciates people, and if they do
not get food soon after consumption, their men
-tal qualities would suffer; otherwise it was harm--
less, as it improved digestion and appetite. Only
bad ganja, and not what they call in Cuddapah
mulki ganja, causes dysentery and bronchitis or
asthma. It induces laziness, but not immorality;
it improves the mind if food is taken after it;
otherwise it may lead to an inoffensive sort of
irrecoverable insanity. Three or four people were
said to be so affected in Cuddapah; but this was
not admitted by all. They all agreed that if a
man once went insane through the use of ganja
he never recovered.
46. To this question I copy out the replies of
the Chitvel Hospital Assistant:—
" Case from habitual excessive use.— One native,
Sudra by caste, private Tamillam agent in pro--
fession, in moderate well-to-do circumstances,
lived in one of the petahs in Madras. He had
one bad practice to attend the bhangikhana, which
was in front of his house, every now and then,
and became a beginner in ganja smoking. For
three or four years, as long as fortune was for
him, he lived in peace and harmony with his
wife and had three female issue. His age would
be 35 or 36 before this bad habit was acquired.
He had some of his children lost. Children
grown, family multiplied, then poverty slowly
crept in by his neglect of work. In the mean-
-while he became a pucka smoker. Family
disputes and confusion arose. Seeing this, he
deserted them and led a lazy, secluded,
and vagabondizing life. After a full smoke,
laughter, religious singing, with frequent cough
would follow, and sometimes very bad abusive
talk at the sight of his wife and mother, who in
turn abused him for having left them in a miser--
able state. Sometimes his temper was so much
irritated that he would pounce upon his wife with
an attempt to kill her by biting her throat. This
showed a tendency for homicidal frenzy. At last
excessive smoking and starvation rendered him
impotent, and in a few days after insane.
This
case I saw about twenty-five years ago."
47. I think not.
48. I do not know. If the father emaciates
himself by excessive consumption, I presume
there is less chance of the child being a healthy
one.
49. It is said to be used even by prostitutes.
Its excessive use is said to produce impotence.
50. See previous answer.
51. No; none that I could trace.
53. No; not that I could hear of.
54 and 55. No information available.
56. I could get no information. I give the
Chitvel Hospital Assistant's reply, viz:—
"(a) The effects of hemp use in moderation
are modified by the admixture of lime
juice and sugarcandy in the form of con--
fection and majum.
"(b) Effects of hemp in excess are also modi--
fied by the above admixture of lime juice
and sugarcandy. For personal consump-
tion and for administration to others, if
more intoxicating effect is required, it
is generally used with dhatura, nutmeg,
n u x v o m i c a , o r b o n d a s e e d s . "
57. I could not get any information as to the
different results.
2 D 2