FURTHER
ENQUIRIES REGARDING
THE
ALLEGED
HEMP DRUG CASES
OF
1892.
49
Hemp
Drug
cases
admitted
in 1892—contd.
Name, race, occupation,
district, age, and register
number of lunatic.
Alleged
cause of
insanity.
(Statement
VII.)
Type of
insanity
(Statement
VI.)
State of
health on
admission.
Facts ascertained from the papers.
Asylum history and facts ascertained from
registers and from enquiry from
Superintendent.
Not
insane.
6. Sheikh Waris-contd. Ganja
Not
insane.
Good
he has been insane since Asarh
1298 (June 1891) and "no par-
ticular cause" is assigned for
his insanity.
"He
is not at
present addicted to intoxicants,
but, as he stated in his statement,
used to smoke ganja."
It was
"not known" whether any of
his relatives were insane.
We have examined the records in
this case. The only mention of
ganja is by the Civil Surgeon in
his evidence before the Joint Ma-
gistrate. He said: "I had this
man under my observation for
some days in Jail. He showed no
signs of insanity. He may be a
ganja-smoker, but I cannot say."
This was on 10th February 1892.
On the same day the prisoner
said, "I do smoke ganja some-
times. I had not smoked ganja
on the day that I took these
things."
On the first idem he
had said "I have committed a sin
and ask for pardon.
I was mad
and lost my senses. I am
not
mad now and want to go home."
He made no mention of ganja on
this earlier occasion. There is no
ground in the record to connect
the alleged insanity with
hemp
drugs.
7. Durga
Churn
Chunga; Hindu;
not known; Dacca;
48; No. H 337.
Ganja
Toxic
insanity.
Fair
On 26th August 1889 this man
was admitted to the asylum.
The papers show that his family
history was "not known," that
the man
"smokes
ganja
at
times," and that the cause of
insanity is "not known."
Yet
the entry made in the register
on his admission there is as
follows:—
"This
man is said to have been
insane for 1½ years, and ganja-
smoking is assigned as the cause
of his insanity."
"He suffered from 'recurrent ma-
nia,' but after a long lucid in-
terval he was discharged on 25th
November 1890.
He was re-ad-
mitted on 2nd April 1892, and
the Descriptive
Roll shows that he
had been insane 'since ten or
twelve years,' and that
'luna-
tic's brother was insane for some
time.'
It is stated that it is 'not
known' whether the lunatic was
addicted to intoxicants, and the
cause of insanity is 'not known.'"
Dr. Nicholson (Civil Surgeon and
Superintendent of the Asylum)
adds in his certificate:
"He
has on previous occasions been
in the Asylum, his insanity being
induced by ganja."
But there is
no authority given for this state-
ment, which is probably based on
the entry in the Asylum regis-
ter quoted above.
Since his readmission this man has
had three fits of recurrent mania.
During fits he is very excited, dir-
ty, abusive, restless, and violent.
When we visited the asylum he
was in a terribly maniacal condi-
tion, pacing up and down his cell
and shouting and beating the
wall.
8. Madhavram Dev;
Hindu; Cultivator;
Sylhet; 45; No. L
215.
Ganja
Toxic
insanity.
Good
In the Descriptive
Roll this man is
said to have been insane for two
years, and
"consumption
of
ganja" is assigned as the cause
of his insanity.
He has a
"scar
on centre of forehead."
He has
not had epilepsy.
He is violent
at times, and struck a boy and a
man with sticks and caused a
slight wound
to
the
former.
Sometimes goes naked. Is filthy
The Overseer entered "ganja smok-
ing" as the cause of insanity on
the patient's admission into the
Asylum, but left the disease blank.
This blank the
Superintendent
subsequently filled in with "Toxic
insanity?" (as doubtful).
The
man's
Asylum history is thus
summed up.
"Subject to fits of
excitemtent. Fits last about a
month or six weeks, and the
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