Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-10-27
Society and Hashish.


as degenerate as that of Paris and other
continental cities. owing to it's innate
love Of outdoor sports. ie cannot be said
to be quite free from some of the Sc
cret vices which are the curse of mod
the classes who have no serious aim or
purpose in life. Among the vices which
are increasing to an alarming extent here
none is more dangerous than the habit
of using drugs. and it is no secret that
great number of society people are be-
coming addicted to the use of ''hashish.'
In the very. heart of London, in Mayfair
and Belgravia, are number of hashish
rooms, and, that the society woman may
not have to go without her favorite
drug when shopping, two iashish rooms
have been established within stones
throw of Piccadi,ly.
Hashish is really the candy prepared
from Indian hemp, and is largely chewed
in the bazaars of the orient. But if the
full effects of the drug are desired the
tops of the hemp are dried and mingled
with tobacco for smoking, or a tincture
is made by soaking the same in alcohol.
But the effects of Indian hemp upon
human beings are so remarkable (and so
destructive, If persisted in) that few who
fall under its spell can break Of the
| habit.
The chamber devoted to hashish
| smoking Is luXuriously furnished with
couches, settees and divans. The light Of
| day is excluded, a soft glow being af-
| forded by many tiny shaded lamps. En-
| tering, the devotee is attired in loose
robe. and. reclining. puffs for few mo-
| ments a long pipe ontaining Turkish
| tobacco mingled with Indian hemp. Then
| follows singular exaltation of the mind
| Withdrawn from the world and held in a
| delightful reverie. the smoker revels in a
coed the expectations of an imagined
paradise. Minutes are heightened in
| terminably, an hour becomes an eternity
until. awaking from this stupor. the
smoker cannot believe that any less time
than weeks, or years even. have passed
since the first Whit Of the falal pipe was
| taken.
War on Fortune Tellers.
1t is a public secret now that the ini-
| tiative in the police war of extermina-
ton now being waged against the Lon
don fortune tellers was taken by Queen
Mary. who was shocked to find that a
number Of her attendants were in the
habit of consulting occultists. to the det-
riment Of their pocketbooks.
| One of the maids at Buckingham Palace
| consulted Bond street oracle upon a
| love affair that appeared to be anguish
| trash about another woman whom he
| loves was thrown into such state Of
profound detection as to become really
| ill. With her singular thought for the
into the cause of the illness, and-well,
| the whole truth came out severe
homily on the 'follies of fortune tellers'
| followed. and pretty strong hint was
visits to such persons would be followed
| by dismissal.
| While King George is fully with his
| royal consort in this condemnation Of the
| occult the same cannot be said Of many
| highly placed courtiers. and particularly
| those Of the gentler sex. OF course. it is
we'll known that the late king was much
| inclined to the mysterious. and consulted
many professedly wise ones from Gypsy
| Lee to lara. And certainly some surpris-
| ing statements were made that time has
honored. 1t was not remarkable. therefore,
| that the royal example was followed, and
the fashionable fortune teller. whose fees
were never less than five guineas. did ex-
| cellent business among the lords and
| ladies of high degree up to the time Of
| the death of King Edward. But Just at
present it is not wise to breathe the
| word mystic in royal circles.
A Rural Comedy.
A check for the magnificent sum Of
eight pence three farthings. solemnly
made payable to a peer Of the realm and
properly signed by the chairman of a
rural district council. another councillor
| and the clerk. will probably figure as In
teresting features Of little comedy now
| in it's initial stage at Chester-le-street,
Durham.
The limelight is at present playing upon
Lord Boyne. a wealthy landowner in the
county of Durham, and other figures
upon the stage are members of the
Chester-le-street rural district council
The principal scenic interest is provided
by such commonplace article as a sewer
The libretto of the little comedy tells
how the rural council. in the execution of
its public functions, laid q sewer