The Calhoun chronicle. [volume] (Grantsville, W. Va.) 1883-1984, 1907-06-18
The Opium Industry.

| collect his harvest, and the first stem
In the operation is the making of n
number of perpendicular wounds i'm
each poppy head. care being taken
not to penetrate the cavity, by means
or small four or five pronged iron
instrument called a nusatur. The in
cising is always performed in the af
ternoon, and early on the following
morning the milky juice which has
exuded from the cuts is gathered by
scraping it off with a small trowel-
like scoop, called a sittooha. The
gatherer places the juice in an earth
en- vessel, called a kurrace. and lets
1t stand, stirring it occasionally for n
period of several weeks. until TIN,
collector for the opium factory visits
mis- village, and the opium is weighed.
graded and purchased.
The compound OF the opium fac
tory contains many hundred earthen
jars of crude opium, which has been
freed by hand OF larger impurities
each Jar containing one maund or
nearly eighty-two pounds, and all
separated into lots. of hundred lars.
After a rigorous examination by the
superintendent, the jars Are carried
by native workers to n large room
containing a number Of stone cisterps
or watts with walls raised about five
feet above the floor, and with narrow
passages between every three or four
watts. The watts each hold 21OO
maunds, or over 10000 pounds OF
opium. Into these watts the lars arc
emptied. The watts are filed to the
brim with the soft, mahogany col
ored substance, which here and there
hardens TO a glistening crust. The
Jars are scraped out by hand. and
when broken the shards are carefully
washed and cleaned, so that no specll
or the valuable substance shall be
wasted. The workers enter the vats
and so that they shall not sink into
the opium as into so much quicksand.
they stand upon planks which serve
as RATS, and then scoop up brass ba-
SINS full OF the substance and hand
these to women carriers, who take
them to the official weigher. After
being weighed the opium is thorough
ly mixed in shallow watts by coolies.
who use race like Implements for the
purpose. After this it is trampled
by the feet of others, who walk
around in the watts. Curiously
enough, no i'll effects have ever been
noticed in these coolies, who some
times walk for periods of four or
five hours in the opium.
After being mixed thoroughly in
this manner the opium is allowed to
stand for some time, and is then
weighed into tin vessels and carried
to the caking room, where it is
packed for the Chinese trade. Here
the weighers sit in iron cages, weigh
ing out opium in just the right
amounts to the packers assistants,
who carry the pats Of opium on plat
tiers to the men who do the actual
packing. Each packer sits at
bench with brass cup on a tray be-
fore him. Near this is a pat of
opium on the platter, a small cup of
liquid opium or lewa. and a pile of
the pancake-like poppy-leaf wrap
pers, as well as tin box full of tick
cts with his number printed thereon.
The assistant kneels before him
holding wrapper which the packer
NNA~'' SSe'i ~ a convenient size ana
deity arranges in the cup. smearing
1t over with the liquid opium. Leaves
are added bit by bit, until bed of
the requisite thickness has been
formed. The opium is then placed
in the cup, the edge Of the leaf
drawn up, and in a few moments it
has all been arranged into n nearly
perfect and evenly covered sphere.
The sphere is, of course, still soft and
pulpy, and is called a cake. The
cake is handed to the assistant. who
takes it to the examiner. When the
latter has passed it, It is covered or
busted with sort of bran OF dried
poppy leaves, and is then fitted in an
earthen cup and placed in the store.
room to mature for some six months.
At the end Of this period the cakes
are packed in wooden chests. and
sent TO Calcutta for sale. The opium
used in India is differently prepared.
being first dried i'm the sun till #
reaches a certain degree Of hardness.
and then pressed into large square
blocks, closely resembling cakes OF
brown transparent soap Scientific
American.