6
REPORT OF THE INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION, 1893-94. [CH. I.
tions as they saw fit. Secondly, attention was drawn to those questions which
deal with the connection, causal or otherwise, of hemp drugs with crime with a
view to the evidence of selected Magistrates and Police officers being obtained
on this subject.
Information from official and
other sources.
7. In addition to the evidence of witnesses, the Commission availed
themselves freely of all information regarding the
subject of their inquiry already existing in official
reports and documents as well as in publications of a non-official character.
Local Governments and Administrations were invited to furnish complete lists of
such official reports and publications, printed copies of those of special importance
being submitted. In addition to these, the Commissioner of Excise or Abkari of
each province was asked to present a memorandum setting forth in detail the
system of administration at present in force in respect to hemp drugs, accompanied
by statistics, where available, for the last twenty years in a form drawn up by
the Commission. These memoranda and statistics will be found in Vol. III
Appendices. Information existing in non-official publications came to the notice
of the Commission from many sources, and was utilized when trustworthy or
found to be of value.
Preliminary tour: Objects and
reasons of—
8. Shortly after assembling in Calcutta, the Commission were convinced
that the period which had elapsed between the
date of the appointment of the Commission and
the date fixed for their assembling at Calcutta was too short to permit of their
proceeding at once with the examination of witnesses. Sufficient time had not
been allowed to the Commission to become generally acquainted with the system
of administration in respect to hemp drugs prevailing in each province, or with the
objections taken by certain persons or bodies to such systems. More import-
ant still, Local Governments and Administrations required time to enable them to
bring before the Commission a selection of witnesses which would be fairly repre-
sentative of the views and interests involved; and the witnesses themselves, whether
selected by Government or coming forward of their own motion, required time to
consider the conditions of the problem, and to set forth lucidly and in a manner
which would be satisfactory both to themselves and to the Commission the
opinions which they might entertain. Accordingly, with these objects in view,
the Commission before proceeding to the examination of the witnesses made a
preliminary visit to some provinces. The provinces visited, after Bengal, were the
North Western Provinces, the Central Provinces, Bombay, Madras, and the Pun-
jab. Occasion was taken to study the systems in force in these provinces and
the objections thereto, and, in communication with the Local Governments, to
see that full effect had been given to the wishes of the Commission in the
matter of selecting representative witnesses. The lists of witnesses prepared by
Local Governments, so far as they were ready, were examined, and in many
cases considerable additions were made. These lists were supplemented by
increasing not only the number of witnesses selected from the different classes,
but also the numbers of classes themselves. Every effort was made after local
inquiry and in consultation with Local Governments to secure the representation
of all classes and shades of opinion. In view of the ignorance which the Com-
mission found to prevail generally regarding the use and effects of the drugs, it
was found necessary to have a larger number of witnesses in every province