442
I would look at my watch, and then after an hour
or two, as I thought, would look again and find
that scarcely five minutes had elapsed. I would
gaze at its face in deep disgust, the minute hand
seemingly motionless, as though graven in the face
itself; the laggard second-hand moving slowly—so
slowly. It appeared a hopeless task to watch
during its whole infinite time of a minute and
always would I give up in despair before the sixty
seconds had elapsed. Occasionally, when my mind
was most lucid, there was in it a sort of duplex
action in regard to the duration of time. I would
think to myself, it has been so long since a certain
event—an hour for example—since the doctor
came; and then reason would say, "No, it has only
been a few minutes; your thoughts or feelings
are caused by the hemp." Nevertheless I was not
able to shake off this sense of the almost indefinite
prolongation of time even for a minute. The
paroxysms already alluded to were not accompanied
with muscular relaxation. About quarter before
nine o'clock, I was standing at the door, anxiously
watching for the doctor, and when the spells
would come on I would remain standing, leaning
slightly perhaps against the doorway. After a
while I saw a man approaching, whom I took to
be the doctor. The sounds of his steps told me
that he was walking very rapidly, and he was
under a gas-lamp, not more than one-fourth of a
square distant, yet he appeared a vast distance away,
and a corresponding time approaching. This was
the only occasion in which I noticed an exaggera-
tion of distance; in the room it was not percep-
tible. My extremities now began to grow cold,
and I went into the house. I do not remember
further until I was aroused by the doctor shaking
or calling me. Then intellection seemed pretty
good. I narrated what I had done and suffered,
and told the doctor my opinion was that an
emetic was indicated, both to remove any of the
extract still remaining in my stomach, and also to
arouse the nervous system. I further suggested
our going into the office, as more suitable than the
parlour, where we then were. There was at this
time a very marked sense of numbness in my
limbs, and what the doctor said was a hard pinch
produced no pain. When I attempted to walk up-
stairs, my legs seemed as if their lower halves
were made of lead. After that there were no
new symptoms, only an intensifying of those
already mentioned. The periods of unconscious-
ness became at once longer and more frequent,
and during their absence intellection was more
imperfect, although when thoroughly roused I
thought I reasoned and judged clearly. The
oppressive feeling of impending death became
more intense.
It was horrible. Each par-
oxysm would seem to be the longest I had suf-
fered; as I came out of it a voice seemed constant-
ly saying, 'You are getting worse; your paroxysms
are growing longer and deeper; they will over-
master you; you will die." A sense of personal
antagonism between my will-power and myself, as
affected by the drug, grew very strong. I felt as
though my only chance was to struggle against
these paroxysms—that I must constantly arouse
myself by an effort of will; and that effort was
made with infinite toil and pain. I felt as if some
evil spirit had control of the whole of me except
the will-power and was in determined conflict with
that, the last citadel of my being. I have never
experienced anything like the fearful sense of al-
most hopeless anguish and utter weariness that
was upon me. Once or twice during a paroxysm
I had what might be called nightmare sensa-
tions; I felt myself mounting upwards, expanding,
dilating, dissolving into the wide confines of space,
overwhelmed by a horrible, rending, unutterable
despair. Then, with tremendous effort, I seemed
to shake this off and to start up with the shudder-
ing thought, "Next time you will not be able to
throw this off, and what then?" Under the in-
fluence of an emetic I vomited freely, without nau-
sea, and without much relief. About midnight,
at the suggestion of the doctors, I went upstairs
to bed. My legs and feet seemed so heavy I could
scarcely move them, and it was as much as I could
do to walk with help. I have no recollection
whatever of being undressed, but am told I went
immediately to sleep. When I awoke, early in
the morning, my mind was at first clear, but in a
few minutes the paroxysms, similar to those of
the evening, came on again and recurred at more
or less brief intervals until late in the afternoon.
All of the day there was marked anæsthesia of
the skin. At no time were there any aphrodisiac
feelings produced. There were no after-effects,
such as nausea, headache, or constipation of the
bowels."
204. Evidence of the REVD. G. C. DUTT, Missionary, Khulna.
1. As a missionary I have had occasions to mix
amongst lower class people addicted to hemp-
smoking (ganja).
7. Not in this district.
14. None prepared in this district.
19. I have seen people smoking ganja only.
20. Lower class people, such as agriculturists,
coolies, bearers, banias, fishermen, etc., and reli-
gious mendicants, such as sanyasis and fakirs and
followers of Trinath and Kartabhajas and a new
Muhammadan sect called fakirs, smoke ganja. I
cannot give the proportion. Professional singers
are generally addicted to ganja.
21. Flat kind of ganja is generally used.
23. Not to my experience.
24. Up-country people residing in this district
drink bhang generally.
People of Lower Bengal occasionally drink
bhang for medicinal purposes, especially in cases
of diarrhœa and dysentery, and at times of festi-
vals.
There are some who eat bhang occasionally.
25. I see that the use of ganja is gradually
increasing.
The use of bhang is steady.
Charas is scarcely used in this district, excepting
by a few only returning from up-country.
26. Moderation in ganja-smoking is almost
impossible as far as I know. I cannot give the
proportion.
Bhang is generally taken in moderate doses.
29. People ordinarily mix tobacco leaves with
ganja. I have never seen the use of dhatura
with ganja.