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boiled in mustard oil, and this oil applied to itch on
children. I am not aware that ganja or bhang is
used in treating cattle disease. But I have used
it for mules and horses suffering from asthma
and cold. Camel-drivers also use it, I believe, as
medicine.
41. (a) The moderate occasional use of ganja
or bhang is beneficial as a digestive.
(b) Habitual moderate use of ganja is bene-
ficial for the prevention of exposure and alleviation
of fatigue.
(c) I certainly think that it is beneficial as
a febribuge or preventive of disease in malarious
tracts. I saw it used with marked effect in the
Chittagong Hill Tracts and in Naogaon. It is
also said that, owing to cultivation of ganja,
there is much less malaria than in adjoining
places.
About 25 per cent. of the labouring class, I be-
lieve, use ganja to alleviate fatigue, and nearly 75
or 80 per cent, of the ascetics use ganja to counter-
act exposure, and the rest use bhang for the same
purpose. I am not aware what particular class
use ganja for digestive purposes.
42. The moderate use of bhang appears to be
harmless. Those who use bhang are never violent
like ganja smokers.
43. Generally the moderate smokers are not as
offensive as those who go to excess, yet even they
occasionally become offensive to their neighbours,
and especially to the members of their family,
and when he is in need of means to purchase
ganja, he will sell off or pledge the household uten-
sils to purchase ganja.
44. The immediate effect of the moderation of
ganja on the habitual consumer is certainly re-
freshing. It produces intoxication. I do not
think it creates appetite, if it is taken habitually.
It rather kills hunger by habitual use. To habitual
excessive smokers its effect lasts for a short time;
to moderate habitual smokers it lasts perhaps up
to the time fixed for taking another dose, and
to occasional smokers its effect may continue for
twenty-four hours or more.
Subsequent want of gratification produces
longing and sometimes great uneasiness to habi-
tual consumers.
45. Habitual moderate use of bhang is, as I
have already stated, harmless in every respect.
(a) Ganja reduces the body to a skeleton,
unless ghi, butter, or milk is taken with nutritious
food, but such things can rarely be obtained by
most ganja smokers. It is, I believe, for this
reason that the better classes can take ganja
for years without harm. Habitual moderate
smokers remain healthy.
(b) I think by habitual moderate smoking of
ganja a man loses his ordinary appetite.
(c) It often causes dysentery to those who
cannot provide for good diet. I have not seen
any case of bronchitis or asthma caused by moder-
ate habitual use of ganja.
(d) It scarcely induces immorality or debauch-
ery, but it induces laziness.
(e) It deadens the intellect, according to the
quantity of ganja consumed by each smoker, and
I believe it produces insanity to those who go to
excess and cannot afford rich food. Liquor bright-
ens the intellect; ganja deadens it. I have
not seen one drunkard insane, but I have seen
many ganja smokers subject to it, especially those
who take two different drugs, or liquor and drugs.
The type of insanity is generally of a violent
type. There are again some who become morose
and will not speak. Some were found to be better
some time after giving up the habit, and others
were permanently insane.
I cannot say whether any of those ganja
smokers, whom I have known to be insane, had or
had not mental anxiety or brain disease prior to
their acquiring the habit of using the drug.
46. I have already said that habitual excessive
use of ganja produces the evils enumerated in the
above paragraph to a greater extent.
47. I do not know that the habitual moderate
use of any of these drugs can be hereditary, or
that it affects in any way the children of the
moderate consumer. I believe not.
48. Now and then it is said that children of
the habitual excessive smoker of ganja are bad-
tempered and violent, but in a very few instances.
49. I have heard that ganja is sometimes taken
moderately by men indulging in debauchery as an
aphrodisiac, and it is also so used by some prosti-
tutes. I cannot say whether the use of ganja for
this purpose is more injurious than its use as an
ordinary narcotic. Hemp used in this way would
tend to produce impotence. Generally those who
are excessive smokers are not at all prone to
debauchery, like those who indulge in drinking.
50. This is answered in the latter part of the
above question.
51. There is not a large proportion of bad
characters who are habitual moderate consumers
of these drugs. They may have some connection
with hurt cases and sometimes with petty thefts
to enable them to purchase ganja.
52. Some of the habitual excessive smokers of
ganja are occasionally known to commit culpable
homicide or grievous hurt.
53. Excessive indulgence in ganja does incite
to violent crime. I know of a case where a
smoker suddenly murdered a vendor because he
would not supply him with more ganja.
54. I have heard of ganja being used to fortify
the courage of criminals about to commit premedi-
tated acts of violence.
55. I do not know that ganja was ever used
to stupefy the intended victims by criminals. I
have known cases where it has been mixed with
dhatura seed for purposes of crime. This is
generally practised on prostitutes prior to rob-
bing them.
57. There is danger of unintentionally taking
too much by taking ganja internally.
58. I believe that there is much smuggling and
room for much improvement, but it requires
money.
59. I would insist upon closer and more frequent
inspection of stocks. The cultivators do pretty
well what they like at present.
60. The control is very weak. I would put
the whole business on the same footing as opium,
make advances, buy up the crop, store it in
godowns, and issue it under passes to Collectors of
districts.
62. No.