the maniacal fits after a year. In that case family
predisposition was also traced.
46. I have seen cases of habitual excessive use of
ganja, but never treated any, so cannot give my
experiences.
47. I cannot say much on this point, as I have
never seen such cases; but from enquiry of excessive
ganja smokers, no signs of heredity have been
found.
49. I have already said before that it is generally
used as an aphrodisiac in the first instance ; but
gradually they lose all seminal power. Those that
use it as a narcotic also suffer from similar effects.
This is brought about gradually.
56. Dhatura is sometimes mixed with bhang to
poison people as well as to cause more intoxication.
Opium is sometimes mixed with charas for produc-
ing aphrosidiac effects. Cases of dhatura poisoning
with bhang have been seen in the Punjab. I know
of three or four cases.
57. The effect of charas, when eaten, is the same
when smoked.
In conclusion, in my opinion these hemp drugs
should be prohibited from being sold, which will
be doing good to humanity.
49. Evidence* of MATHRA DAS,† Khatri, Medical Practitioner, Rawalpindi.
1. I have for about forty years practised as a phy-
sician, and have frequently had under my treat-
ment patients suffering from injuries caused by
such intoxicant drugs.
I knew the antecedents of those patients, and
am therefore acquainted with the good or bad
effects of the drugs.
2. The plant grows in our province and is of
three kinds: jangli, pahari, and baghi. Jangli
(or wild) is the plant that grows spontaneously in
the Rawalpindi district. Its leaves are green and
the plant is of a middling size, about 1½ or 2 yards
in height. It is of an average intoxicating power.
The pahari bhang is that which grows spontane-
ously in the hills of Jammu and Kashmir. It has
brown and curved leaves, and is of a smaller stature
thanu the other kinds. Being drier, it possesses
greater intoxicating power. Baghi is the cultivated
bhang, grown in the Shahpur district, and is there
called Shihan. Its leaves are darkish green, and
the plant is taller than all the other kinds, about 3
yards in height. Being not so dry, it has less
intoxicating power.
Bhang is here known by the following names:
—bhang, sukha, buti, bijaya, and kanab by phy-
sicians.
I cannot state anything in detail about charas
and ganja, as they are not prepared in this prov-
ince. Charas is prepared in Yarkand and Bokhara
and imported into this province for sale. It is
said to be prepared in two ways. That prepared in
Yarkand is made from dust and called gardah
(dust), while that of Bokhara is prepared from the
liquid extract of the blossom of bhang plant, is
superior to the Yarkandi charas, and is called
teliya.
Charas is known by these names :—charas, suta,
sulpha.
I can say nothing about ganja, for it is, so far
as I know, not used in this province.
19. Charas is in this province used only for
smoking by means of a chilhm and in no other
way. As to ganja, I have already stated that it
is not used in this province.
23. So far as I know bhang is not in this prov-
ince used for smoking.
28. The average quantity of bhang required for
an habitual moderate consumer is 3 mashas (¼ of a
tola), worth one pie, and of charas 2½ mash as, worth
9 pies.
Excessive habitual consumers have no fixed
quantity—some would consume one tola, others a
chitak (5 tolas), and so forth. I happened to be
once at Katas Raj, a sacred place among the
Hindus, situated within the limits of (the town of)
Pind Datlan Khan, where a large number of Hindu
fakirs gather on the occasion of the Baisakhi (12th
April). A chillum had four rings on four corners
of it, and was hung from a tree with a string tied
to the rings. Five chittaks of charas were placed
in the chillum and fakirs were smoking it.
There can thus be no fixed quantity of it.
29. Ordinarily, black pepper, almonds, and poppy
seed are mixed with bhang. Some people, with a
view to give flavour to the drink mix also milk,
sugar, and char magz (4 kernels). Others are
contented with black pepper only. Bhang being
injurious to the retentive power of the memory, the
admixture of the above articles reduces its injurious
effect.
In special cases some people mix dhatura, opium,
ah (swallow-wort), and the poppy head. The
beverage thus formed is called panjtor, and is drunk
generally by the class of fakirs called jogis. Others
mix only dhatura, liquor and milk. This beverage
is known by the name of madhra. These ingre-
dients are mixed only to intensify the intoxicating
power.
Charas is generally smoked along with tobacco,
i. e., by placing charas in the midst of tobacco, the
object being to avoid its being smoked at once,
which might prove fatal.
In special cases charas is smoked with a mixture
of musk, opium, saffrom, and small cardamoms.
Opium is mixed for intensifying the narcotic
property, and the three others for giving sweet
odour and vitality. These are mixed only by those
addicted to the use. of the drug.
There is only one compound sold in the bazars
for mixture with bhang. It is called sardai and
consists of poppy-seed, kasni (endive), seeds of
melons, seeds of cucumber, almond, and black
pepper. There is also sold a compound of bhang
called majum, which is a kind of sweetmeat and
prepared in small flat pieces. The following is the
method of preparing it: A seer of bhang leaves are
dipped in water sufficient to immerse them with an
inch of water above them. Mixing half a seer of
ghi with the mixture, the whole is placed on fire
and kept there till all the water is dried up and
only the ghi is left. The concoction is then taken
off the fire and poured into a piece of thick cloth or
blanket and rubbed with the hands, so as to extract
the ghi from it. Sugar is then mixed with the
ghi at the rate of one seer of the former with a
* Transition.
† Invited to attend at a sitting of the Commission for oral examination, but failed to appear.