Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-03-19
PREPARING P,u
How the Deadly Drug Is Fixed fer smok
ing Purposes.

ing Purposes.
Before entering upon an account of
the manner in which the pernicious
habit is practiced, it would be we'll to
describe how the opium is preparation
smoking, as but few smokers, even
those who are veteran fends, seem to
know any thing about it. Williams,
in ''The Middle Kingdom" thus de-
scribes the process:
The utensils usedfor preparing opium
for smoking consist chiefly Of three
hemispherical brass pans, two bamboo
filters, two portable furnaces, earthcn
pots. ladies', straining cloths and
sprinklers. The opium ball, which is
covered with poppy leaves, being cut
in two, the interior is taken out and the
opium adhering to or contained in the
leafy covering is simmered three times.
each time a pint Of spring water being
used, and the liquid strained into an
earthen pot; cold water is poured over
the dregs after the third boiling, and
from half a cake Of opium, weigh
ing at first about twenty-eight pounds,
! there will be about five pints of
liquid. The interior of the cake is then
boiled with this liquid for about an hour,
until all is reduced to a paste, which
is then spread out with a spatula in two
pans and exposed to the fire for two or
three minutes at q time, until the water
is all dried off; during this operation it
is often broken up and re-spread, and
at the last drying cut Gro with a
knife. 1t is all then spread out on the
pan i'll n cake and covered with six
pints of water and allowed to remain
several hours or over night for diges-
ton. When sufficiently soaked a rag
filter is placed on the edge of the pan,
and the whole of the valuable part
drips slowly through the rag into 3
basket lined with coarse bamboo paper;
from which, it falls into the other brass
pan, about as much liquid going
through Us there was water poured
over the cake. The dregs are
again soaked and Immediately filtered
until found to be nearly tasteless. This
weaker part usually makes about six
pints of liquid. The first six pints are
then briskly boiled, being sprinkled
with cold water SC as to allay the heat
and not boil over, and the scum is re-
moved with a feather into u separate
vessel. After boiling twenty minutes
five pints of the weak liquid are poured
in and boiled with it until the
whole has been cvaporated to about
three pints, when it is strained
through paper into another pan
and the remaining pint thrown into
the pan just emptied to wash
away any portion that may re-
main in it, and also boiled little while,
when it is also strained into the three
pints. The whole is then placed over
slow fire in the smallfurnace and boiled
down to a proper consistency for
smoking. While it is evaporat-
ing, a ring forms around the
edge. and the pan is taken
off the fire at intervals to prolong the
process, the mass being meanwhile
rapidly stirred with sticks, and famed,
until it becomes thick like t~reacle, when
it is taken out and put into small pots
for smoking. The drcgs containing
the vegetable residuum, together with
the scum and washings of the pan,
are lastly strained and boiled with
water, producing about six pints
of Il thin, brownish liquid, which
is evaporated to a proper consist
ence for selling to the poor. The
process of seething the crude opium is
exceedingly unpleasant to those I'M
accustomed to it, on account of the
overpowering narcotic fumes which
arise. The loss of wcightby this mode
Of preparation is about onc-half.-Sam
Francisco Chronicle.