507
47. In my opinion there must be five per cent.
of such consumers, with whom the moderate use of
charas and bhang is hereditary, and this habit
must certainly affect their children. The practice
generally prevails among native musicians, kanjars
and dervishes.
48. The habit certainly becomes hereditary with
the children of the excessive consumers, as it is
difficult for them to break off the habit.
49. In the beginning the use of bhang moderate-
ly acts as an aphrodisiac. The moderate use of
charas and the excessive use of bhang affect virility.
Perhaps 1 or 2 per cent. among immoral women
make use of charas. Indeed, 5 or 7 per cent. out
of them use bhang. No wonder if charas-smok-
ing produce impotency, as it dries the blood and
injures virility.
50. The excessive use of charas causes insanity.
Two or three persons in Hoshiarpur are begging
from door to door like insane people, and have been
reduced to this miserable condition in consequence
of charas-smoking.
51. The badmashes generally consume charas
and bhang, and get other people also to form the
bad habit. They, however, do not commit any
crime. There may be some rare cases.
52. The excessive consumers of charas and
bhang become unfit for work, and are reduced to
beggary in the end. They also commit petty
thefts and talk nonsense.
53. The excessive indulgence in charas and
bhang does not incite all of a sudden to unpreme-
ditated crime, violent or otherwise. Indeed, it
leads to speaking nonsense. The charas smokers
do not and cannot commit homicide, as they are
themselves just like the dead, in other words, they
are generally emaciated and lazy.
54. Criminals do not use charas and bhang to
fortify themselves to commit an act of violence and
other crime.
55. Bhang and charas are of little use to crimi-
nals in overpowering their victims, nor can they
stupefy them by means of the two drugs. Complete
stupefaction cannot be induced by charas and
bhang without admixture.
56. If charas and bhang are moderately used,
the consumers can attend to his business. Exces-
sive use, however, makes him quite unfit for work.
The fakirs mix dhatura for personal use. The rob-
bers induce their victims to smoke (with tobacco)
admixture of dhatura, with a view to rob them.
57. I have not seen any one eating or drinking
charas. Bhang is, however, swallowed in the form
of a pill after being ground.
58. There is no defect in the present excise sys-
tem, except that the leases for the monopoly to sell
the drugs are sold separately in respect of small vil-
lages in batches, and different contractors obtain
the leases. So one lessee generally undersells the
rival contractor to put him to loss. This undersell-
ing leads to smuggling and an increase in the num-
ber of consumers. If leases were given out by
auction in respect to districts, and granted to one
person, nothing of the sort would occur, nor would
the number of consumers increase.
59. In my opinion the best thing would be to
sell leases of each district to one contractor.
60. Ganja is not produced in this province, nor
is there any necessity of any method for control-
ling it.
61. As charas is not produced here, no modifica-
tion is required in any respect.
62. The hemp plant is not cultivated here at all.
The wild plants are, however, properly controlled, as
no one except the contractor can get them collected.
Moreover, he, too, cannot do so without obtain-
ing permission. The system would work still
better if the license were granted to one person in
the district, as is being done in the Saharanpur
district. It will also save trouble to Government,
that is, the Government will then have to keep
watch over one person instead of many.
63. There is no objection to the present system
of wholesale and retail vend. Indeed, the local
wholesale vendors must obtain license. The pre-
sent arrangement of giving leases by auction in re-
spect to villages in batches should not continue. The
leases should be given in respect to districts, as is the
case in the south of India. The present system is,
however, satisfactory for the Yarkand and Ladakh.
merchants. It should not be necessary for them
to obtain a license.
64. There is no objection to the present system.
Indeed, if the leases be sold for whole districts, in
that case the contractor in his district need not
obtain a permit for conveying bhang and charas
from one shop to another in the district.
When the traders cannot sell these articles at
one place, they have to convey them to another.
So the present arrangement is not favourable to
them.
65. In my opinion the taxation of charas and
bhang is reasonable with reference (a) to each other,
(b) to alcoholic or other intoxicants. No alteration
is necessary.
66. As I know nothing about ganja, I cannot
give any opinion in respect to it.
67. The present rate of duty on charas and bhang
appears to be reasonable. Having regard to the
ultimate incidence of the tax on the consumer, it
would be an excess to propose a new tax. In that
case trade, too, will be paralysed, in other words,
the traders of charas and bhang will suffer a loss.
68. There are no other shops or houses, except
those of the lessees, where the drugs can be sold by
retail vend. Indeed, there are shops for wholesale
vend. The wholesale dealers should certainly have
a license, in other words, the privilege of retail
vend should be granted to the local lessee.
69. The wishes of the villagers and the neigh-
bouring people are generally consulted whenever a
new shop is opened for the sale of these drugs.
70. Smuggling is practised in those districts
which are co-terminus with the Native States. In
my opinion, the evil can be remedied in this way.
The leases should be given to one contractor in res-
pect to petty States, and not in respect to villages
separately. In the case of large States, the leases
should be granted to two or three persons ; other-
wise, in respect to villages, one contractor undersells
the rival contractor, in order to defeat him. In this
way smuggling is practised.
vol. v.
3 Y 2