The Irish standard., 1901-01-05
GROWING OPIUM.
Work of Cinnamon in Cultivnting the
Poppy and Preparing the
Product for Market

Everybody knows something about
opium, and but few people know ex-
actly what it is. The Europeans,
when they are shown this brown and
,iscous paste, can scarcely believe
Sat it is the magician from whom the
Chinese demand delicious dreams. Let
Us hasten TO say that opium only pro-
Nokes dreams under the fantastic pen
CT romancers; it Gains the nerves and
creates pleasant torpor, that is all,
saws the Chicago Times-Herald.
Opium looks like Il paste. To smoke
Il paste seems impossible, but the
smoker nanipulates it in such a way
with the complicated Instruments Of
he fumerie that it shrivels and melts
while producing more smoke than an
equal weight of tobacco or hasheesh.
This celebrated poison, which is sold
for almost its weight in gold, is moth.
ing but the juice Of the poppy. 1t
quickly enriches those who cultivate
ii. for it sells very soon in the mar.
lyrts. where the demand for it is al.
Ways greater than the supply. If the
"oppy is not more cultivated, it is be-
yause there is needed for it a ground,
climate. and an especial situation
which the countries suitable for its
'r"sperity have difficulty in finding.
Without that there is not II Chinese,
4 Hindu or Persian who would not
utivate the rcmuwrative poppy.
according to statistics, it has for its
Principal habitat the high plateaus of
I've interior of China and their .coun-
erparts: then zone of similar eli
late winding from 30 degrees to 40
'cgrccs north latitude. from Turkey
Y Asia to Cashmere; and at last In
ia. The poppy of Benures and of
SMYRNA is considered the best pro.
'ueer of opium. The quality of the
"ndnct dimnishcs as the distance
.""m the ideal zone increases. 1t goes
without saying that this flower is cul.
ivatcd in many other places and
sometimes With complete success. but
il is always in very small proportio ions.
In India and Tonlin it is sown to.
vgrd the end of October. Fifteen kilos
of seed are enough for Il hectarc.
The seed of the poppy is very small.
Va avoid putting too much in one
ace it is mixed with sand and in.
e nscd in bottle. which becomes
s"moir in the following way: The
bottle is closed with cork which
is pierced and n tube of quill passed
through; then the bottle is shaken
and the mixture of sand and seed
will pour out regularly on the ground.
Great care must be taken not TO SOW
the seeds too deeply, as they need but
q superficial covering.
The best way to SOW it is in simple
parallel lines leaving space enough
irr the digging of the little canals
necessary FOR irrigation and the con.
tinual hoeing of the plant during the
period OF growth. Then, when the
poppy has lowered, tow; rd the month
of january. these spaces arc useful
to the workmen who gather the
opium.
At first the workmen make incis.
ions in the capsule of the poppy. The
next operation is to collect the juice;
the third one to dry it.
AS soon as the flower falls the in.
cisions are made obliquely from the
top TO the base OF the capsule with
very sharp knives. These missions are
one millimetcr deep, but should not
go through The covering of the fruit;
this requires great care. Three or
four OF these missions arc made i'm
the capsule at the hottest hour of the
day. and on the flowers upon which
there is not the least trace of rain or
dew. The operation is repeated until
the whole surface of tie capsule is
covered with incisions.
At each lip thus made the tiny drops
Of II white liquid soon forms in pearls.
The rnltivnior begins gathering them
at once. so that the drops of Juice will
not have time to thirkcn, for then
they would not be of any use Men
| and womrn-thc women cost less and
arc more skillrul-arc put to work
gathering with some sor, of an in.
strumrnt, usually an ordinary mussel
shell, all hcse milky drops. At the
end of the day the collection of each
| workman amounts to $50 or SOC
grnnmrs received and measured in q
| receptacle attached to the waist. The
second operation is thus terminated.
For the third that is to say the
drying the juice is poured into large
fiat dishes and exposed to the sun
Little by little il changes color, and
when it is solid enough il is made
into cakes of so grammcs, which are
again dried. Some cultivntors place
item in hot houses. The cakes are
rolled in the leaves or petals of poppy.
tF'n they arc sent to The boilers, who
subject them to prolonged cooking,
$" as TO make that pnsty and almost
black substance which is the delight
o! smokers. When the opium enters
commerce il is sold for about a dollar
or Il dollar and a quarter Il taeei-thut
is to say, nearly the contents of u
supspoon.
Man and Denst Skeletons.
Dr. Charlcs Cary, of Buffalo, has pre-
senled TO the museum Of the univer-
siiy there valuable addition TO it's
list of exhibits. 1t is group of skele-
tons representing The comparative os-
teology Of the human family and that
OF The lower animals, represented in
this instance by the horse, dog and
bear. The group represents hunting
scene. The quarry is a bear, pursued