198 REPORT OF THE INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION, 1893-94. [CH. X.
evil consequences of the indulgence: "Weakness of the digestive organs first
ensues, followed by flatulency, indigestion, swellings of the limbs and face,
change of complexion, diminution of sexual vigour, loss of teeth, heaviness,
cowardice, depraved and wicked ideas, etc." Iban Beitar was the first to
record its tendeney to produce mental derangement, and he even states that it
occasionally proves fatal. Taki-ed-din-Ahmad, commonly known as Makrizi, who
wrote a number of treatises upon Egypt in the 14th century, states that in 780
Hijra very severe ordinances were passed in Egypt against the use of the drug;
the famous garden in the valley of Dijoncina was rooted up, and all those con-
victed of the use of the drugs were subjected to the extraction of their teeth;
but in 799 Hijra the custom re-established itself with more than original
vigour. Makrizi states: "As its consequence, general corruption of senti-
ments and manners ensued, modesty disappeared, every base and evil passion
was openly indulged in, and nobility of external form alone remained to
these infatuated beings." Rumphius alludes doubtingly to the alleged aphro-
disiac powers of the drug, and states that the kind of mental excitement it pro-
duces depends upon the temperament of the consumer. O'Shaughnessy in his
introduction to certain experiments with hemp drugs remarks: "As to the evil
sequelæ so unanimously dwelt on by all writers, these did not appear to us so
numerous, so immediate, or so formidable as many which may be clearly traced
to over-indulgence in other powerful stimulants or narcotics, viz., alcohol,
opium, or tobacco." O'Shaughnessy also refers to insanity occasioned by con-
tinued hemp inebriation as follows: "Before quitting this subject, it is desirable
to notice the singular form of insanity which the incautious use of hemp
preparations often occasions, especially among young men who try it for the first
time. Several such cases have presented themselves to our notice. They are
as peculiar as the 'delirium tremens' which succeeds the prolonged abuse of
spirituous liquors, but are quite distinct from any other species of madness
with which we are acquainted. The state is at once recognized by the strange
balancing gait of the patient, a constant rubbing of the hands, perpetual giggling,
and a propensity to caress and chafe the feet of all bystanders of whatever
rank. The eyes wear an expression of cunning and merriment which can
scarcely be mistaken. In a few cases the patients are violent; in many highly
aphrodisiac; in all that we have seen voraciously hungry. There is no increased
heat or frequency of circulation or any appearance of inflammation or conges-
tion, and the skin and general functions are in a natural state. A blister to
the nape of the neck, leeches to the temples, and nauseating doses of tartar
emetic with saline purgatives have rapidly dispelled the symptoms in all the
cases we have met with, and have restored the patients to perfect health."
This description of what O'Shaughnessy considered hemp drug insanity is of
considerable interest.
It is clear from his account that the symptoms
were of short duration, almost typical, and that under treatment recovery
was rapid. Such cases as those described by O'Shaughnessy are probably
similar to the class of cases which have occasionally come before the Com-
mission as having occurred while under observation of the certifying medical
officer, and which on reaching the asylum were sane. They were probably
more of the character of intoxication than of insanity. The curious point, how-
ever, in connection with O'Shaughnessy's account of hemp drug insanity is the
absence of all information as to cases of longer duration, such as the class of