The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1927-02-24

supply is SO llmlteQ Indt IL is never
seen except among the richest mer-
| chants of Zebide, lib, Taiz and Sanaa.
The commonest kind is Moquari, which
grows in the district of Makatra,
about four days. camel ride from
Alden, and most of the $500 camel
| loads Of khat which reach Alden in
the course Of year is of this variety.
Khat cultivation is simple. The
plant bears neither flowers nor seeds,
but is grown from cuttings After the
farmer has flooded his field till the
soil has absorbed it's utmost of water,
he covers it with goat droppings and
allows 1t to 'ripen" for a few days
Then he buries the cuttings in shallow
holes from to 6 feet apart, with
space enough between the rows for
pickers to pass. But the Yemen COW
and the sad-eyed camel, whose nav is
never filled, have a nice taste in khat
cuttings and to discourage these ma
RAIDERS the former covers each hill
with thorn twigs and spiny cactus
leaves. Sometimes he trains one Of
the half-wild dogs which infest the
village to guard that particular field.
At the end Of a year the young
shrubs are two feet high with thick
ly spread green foliage Is inches in
diameter. Behold now the farmer 60
ing out into the dawn of each morning
to gaze at his field and the sky in the
hope Of seeing the portents of harvest
time. On a morning the air is thick
with bulbuls, sparrows, weaver birds,
shrilly clamoring. They rise and fall
upon his plants, picking at the tender
est leaves. "Allah be praised!" cries
the simple farmer, "the leaves are
sweet and ripe for the market"
And now he calls his women and the
wives Of his neighbors to the crop
picking. Under a bower of jasmine
vines, with plumes of the sweet-smell-
ing rehan in their turbans, the farmer
and his cronies gather to drink kishar
from tiny cups and smoke the hubbuk,
while the womenfolk bring them arm
fuls Of the freshly cut khat leaves.
What a joyous time 1t is for all the
village; for always the farmer dis
tributes the whole of his first crop
among his neighbors.
The khat plant grows from s to 10
feet in height and then it stops. AS
the foliage thickens, the larger
branches are pruned out to prevent
crowding, and when the plant is SIX
teen years old the top usually dies. It
Is cut off about foot above the
ground, and from the stump new
shoots spring out and the plant is re-
born.
In Alden the arrival of the khat
camels is looked forward to as the
chief daily event. When they arrive.
about noon, the market is filled with
restless, yelling mob. Bedlam has
broken loose, but 1t Is a merry, good
natured bedlam.
After the khat Is weighed on the
government scales and duly taxed, it
is divided into bundles the thickness
of a mans forearm. Then the sellers
mount tables and auction 1t off.
In an hour the place is all but de-
serted and the foot-marked, earthen
floor Uttered with debris. Now come
the vendors Of flrewood and all the
despised castles, like scavengers, to
buy the refuse for q few pice. But
out In the streets may be seen hun
dreds happily vending homeward, a
bundle of the precious leaves under
each arm, their jaws working and
their eyes full Of a delicious content.
It Is close on to noon, and you will not
see them again until after two o'clock.
Contrary to the general opinion,
khat is never used as beverage In
the Yemen, but the fresh leaves are
invariably chewed. The youngest
leaves are the best. They have
sweetish, slightly astringent taste, not
unpleasant to the European palate,
but certainly not alluring. When
brewed, they lose most of their
strength and the flavor of the decoc-
ton is much like that Of grapevine
cigarettes"
Just what is the exact toxic effect
Of khat on the human system has
never yet been ascertained. 1t Is GER
tainly stimulant with a lively and
nearly immediate effect upon the
brain ard nerve cells; the gloomlest
man becomes cheerful under its infiu-
ence, the most enervated active.
....A.<