202
8.
Vide answer to No. 7.
9. No special methods were adopted in its cul-
tivation. It is grown on the same soil and under
the same conditions as brinjal, kodaikal or any
other vanpayir crop.
10. No; they were the ordinary agricultural
class.
11. No.
12. I have no knowledge of the wild hemp
plant.
13. A license is required for its cultivation in
this district. Apparently not. When cultivated
here it was successfully grown on wet red and
black soils, and on dry sand and hilly ground.
14. The plant (for preparation of ganja) was
grown formerly. Vide answer to No. 7. Ganja
sellers now import their ganja from North Arcot
where the wild hemp is said to grow spontaneous
- l y o n
t h e J a v a d i h i l l s .
15. These products are not prepared in this
division, and no information is available as to
their methods of preparation. It is said that the
cultivated plant is best made into broken ganja,
the wild into flat and round ganja.
Ganja and tobacco are chopped and mixed for
smoking.
Ganja, pepper, ginger, and spices are mixed
with sugar and ghee and eaten.
Ganja, pepper, and spices are pounded up in
water and drunk.
16. No. Ganja and bhang can both be made
from the plant grown here, not charas. Charas
can be made out of the wild plant that grows in
North Arcot.
17. The cultivators themselves used to prepare
the drug when hemp was formerly grown here.
18. Charas will keep two years, and bhang and
ganja one year without deteriorating. Charas
still has some efficacy after five years and the
other two after three years. After this they are
useless. These periods are given on the assump
- t i o n t h a t t h e d r u g i s n o t e x p o s e d t o t h e a i r . I f
exposure be allowed all three deteriorate more
rapidly.
19. Ganja is used for smoking and for eating
and drinking (vide answer to No. 15).
20. A very small proportion of the people here
use ganja. Charas is never used except by pilgrims
from the north. Sudra paradesis consume the
most, but Maravas, Pallars, and Agambadians do
use it, as do some Muhammadans.
21. Flat everywhere.
22, Charas, as said above, is not here used.
Northern pilgrims bring it with them occasion-
ally.
23. No.
24. It is said that formerly when the plant was
cultivated here, bhang was both eaten and drunk
by the classes mentioned in answer to No. 20
along with ganja. This is no longer so.
25. Up to last year the yearly sales of licenses
had somewhat increased for three years following.
Last year there was little rain, and the consequent
heat caused a falling off in the consumption.
26 The classes given in No. 20 and Paradesis
are (a) of ganja. North country bairagis may
perhaps come under (b) of ganja and charas.
28. If ganja be taken
—
(a) may be 1 1/3 tolas (value six pies), and
(b) four toles (value one anna four pies).
29. Ganja is often (perhaps ordinarily) mixed
with tobacco for smoking. Dhatura is not used,
and bhang massala is not known.
30. Smoking parties are the custom, one man
being the host and finding the ganja, etc. Quite
confined to male sex. Confined to no particular
time of life, except that children are not allowed
it.
31 (a). Yes.
(b) Yes.
(c) Doubtful. No general rule can be laid
down any more than with ordinary tobacco smok-
ers. Differs in tendency with different constitu-
tions.
32. No such customs here. The consumption
of the drug is mainly a social custom.
33. There may be some slight social public
opinion against excessive ganja smoking (not
against moderate consumption) as it is apt to
make the smoker lazy immediately afterwards.
No worship of the hemp plant is known.
34. Yes, undoubtedly. Habitual consumers,
whether moderate or excessive, are said to suffer
much and to deteriorate physically if the drug is
denied them.
35. It would be exceedingly difficult. If the
shops were closed, the drug could with ease be
illicitly prepared and secretly cultivated, The pro-
hibition could only be enforced by obnoxious
espionage by the police, whose powers for annoy-
ance would be greatly increased. Consumers
would experience undoubted discontent, but here
they are so few that their discontent would hardly
have any marked political aspect. Opium would
perhaps be resorted to, but there is no efficient
substitute for ganja. Alcohol is too expensive
(in the form of arrack) for the average consumer.
36. No; as stated above, alcohol is expensive,
and not real substitute for ganja.
37. Charas smoking is said to produce more
marked lethargy.
38. Flat ganja alone, as already stated, is here
consumed.
39. Smoking is said to be the more injurious.
Just as with tobacco, there is a liability that the
throat and sight may become affected. Such
liability seems slight.
40. Ganja is used medicinally by native doctors
for complaints in the stomach.
41. Ganja is said to he marked in its effect on
digestion, which it assists, and to promote stay-
ing-power under exposure or exertion. There is
no fever here, and it is not employed as a febri-
fuge. I refer to the moderate habitual use of the
drug in the shape of ganja and in the case of the
classes already mentioned.
42. Moderate use appears to be quite harmless,
and to be even beneficial for the reasons given
above.
43. Perfectly.
44. Yes. It produces temporary lethargy. It
does not allay hunger markedly, and is even
alleged to create appetite. The effects do not al
- t o g e t h e r d i s a p p e a r f o r s o m e f e w h o u r s . O n l y
after-effect seems to be a slight lethargy. Absence
of subsequent gratification produces longing.
45. (a). No; none are discoverable.
(b). No; vide supra. It supports it.
(c). No.
(d), Smoking is said to cause now and then
throat affections of a nature not clearly known.