118
REPORT OF THE INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION, 1893-94.
[APP.
The man is still in the Asylum, and his case is one of mania pure and simple. I
regard him as a patient that is most unlikely to recover. I am inclined to call the case
one of heredity.
LAHORE;
W. COATES, M,D.,
The 31st January 1894.
Superintendent,
Lunatic Asylum.
From enquiries the following facts relating to past history of Mana Singh, son of
Golab Singh, of village Dhotian, Thana Sirhali, were obtained from Sunder Singh, son of
Khuta Singh, and Lal Singh, son of Buta Singh, and Sarup Singh, son of Ram Singh.
Lal Singh's father and Mana Singh's father were cousins from the father's side, and
Sarup Singh is head Lambardar of Mana Singh's village. The latter also is distantly
related to Mana Singh and has known Mana Singh from infancy.
Sunder Singh's father was brother to Mana Singh's father, and his mother was sister
to Mana Singh's mother. He and the others affirm that none of his relatives, as far as
his recollection carries him back, were ever of unsound mind or touched in the head in
any way. He and the others affirm that they were children together with Mana Singh,
and grew up together to manhood in the same village. They did not notice any pecu-
liarity in Mana Singh's manner during boyhood, nor was he excitable or given to out-
bursts of temper.
He was noticed particularly to be of a mild quiet and timid disposition. His mind up
to enlisting in the 29th Punjab Infantry, 15 years ago, was perfectly sound. His father
was Subadar in the 29th Punjab Infantry. He went with his regiment under his father
to the Afghan War in 1878 and returned to Agra in 1880. While in service he became
insane and was treated regimentally. A short while after he recovered his sanity and
continued well till his return to Agra, when he obtained leave for three months. A few
days after his return to his home he became raving mad, for which he was treated by a
hakim. Three weeks after he broke loose from confinement and joined a fakir's establish-
ment at Tallagung. It seems his regiment was stationed at Tallagung before going on
service in 1878, where Mana Singh became acquainted with this fakir, and at that time
his father, who was a Subadar in the regiment, noticed that Mana Singh was going to the
bad, and had taken to bhang drinking at the fakir's place.
The father always ascribed his son's altered manner and attacks of temporary un-
soundness of mind to indulgence in bhang drinking. He was two years in service, where
he could not indulge so freely or so often in bhang, and only suffered once from unsound-
ness of mind. On his return to India in 1880 he took to bhang drinking again, and on
his return to his village on leave in 1880 he indulged in it pretty freely, and was a con-
stant visitor at the different fakir's houses in his own village and in the villages round
about, where he freely indulged in bhang drinking. A month after his return home he
became insane, and has remained so ever since. Neither his father nor any of his relatives
have ever indulged in Cannabis indica (bhang).
BHUGWAN DAS,
Magistrate, 1st class, Amritsar
District.
T. R. MULRONEY,
Surgeon-Major, Civil Surgeon,
Amritsar.
3.-Mahtab
Din.
It appears from the statement of the only relative of this man that could be found
that his lunacy was caused by indulgence in both alcohol and hemp (bhang), and that
these were only used two or three months before the attack of lunacy came on. The
information is indefinite, and it is impossible to say what share in the production of insanity
should be attributed to each drug.