297

of their father in the case of habitual moderate
consumers.

48.  In case of excessive use, the consumer's
children may inherit physical, mental and moral
defects and weakness of their ancestor.

49.  They are not used as aphrodisiac; neither
prostitutes use them for the purpose.

50.  The excessive use is not also practised as an
aphrodisiac ; but it tends to produce impotence.

51.  Most of the bad characters are habitual con-
sumers of charas.

The smokers of charas are generally of scanty
means ; of necessity they take to gambling and
thieving which soon grows into a habit.

54.  Yes ; thieves and dacoits and highway
robbers do use charas and ganja for the purpose.

55.   (a) Bad characters, who go in disguise as
travellers and fakirs, induce their victims to partake
of ganja or charas for the purpose of robbing them.

(b) Complete stupefaction may be caused by
charas or ganja without any admixture to those
who are not accustomed to it; but those who are
accustomed, they can be stupefied by the admixture
of dhatura.

56.  Dhatura is mixed when speedy and excessive
intoxication is required.

59. In question No. 35 it is asked if the prohi-
bition of any of the drugs is feasible, by which I
understand that absolute prohibition is meant.
Such a prohibition is neither practicable nor advis-
able. But the vice is increasing, and checked it
must be in the best possible way. In my opinion
the best way to check its increase and to effect a
decrease in the consumption would be to adopt the
following methods:—(1) By sale of charas and
ganja mixed with some other harmless substance,
i.e., not pure ganja and charas. (2) By selling
them dearer. (3) By closing many of the shops
that are opened in the mufassal. (4) By increasing
considerably the distance of one shop from ano-
ther. (5) By limiting the quantity of the drugs to
be sold to one person in one day to a very low maxi-
mum.

By these means, when facilities are taken away
from the smokers, they will of necessity smoke less.
To place obstructions in this way would not cause
much annoyance to the smokers, for the above
obstructions will not be direct obstructions ; in fact,
they would be in a way hardening the restrictions
that already exist against the free sale and free
consumption of the drugs.

68. Yes; there are such shops. The use of
drugs at the very premises should not be allowed.
The reasons for such prohibition are as follows :—
People who gather in the stop for smoking pur-
poses become troublesome to the passers-by, the
shops being usually situated on the road. More-
over, if smoking in the shops be allowed, smokers
will smoke as much as they please, and there is
every probability that moderate consumers will soon
become excessive consumers.

The above remarks apply only to ganja and charas,
but bhang is not used in shops.

69. In no way the wishes of the people are con-
sulted and considered when new shops are opened
in any locality. No measures are ever taken to
consult the opinion of the people. Yes; public opini-
on must be taken and considered.

                              Oral evidence.

Question 25.—The decrease of bhang consump-
tion is due to the spread of education. Liquor is
preferred by the educated classes. Bhang in
moderate doses is not mischievous. I have drunk
bhang but not liquor. Charas is smoked by the
poorer classes. The consumption is increasing,
because it is cheap compared with liquor. Smoking
can be had anywhere for the trouble of squeezing
and rubbing the bhang leaves. The habit also
grows upon the consumer. The habit of taking
intoxicants is also growing upon the people by
force of example.

Question 31.—The growth of the habit causes
increased consumption of the drugs, and encourages
other bad habits. There are no cheaper and
stronger drugs to be got. The use of dhatura is
not common. It is only used where the object is
to produce great intoxication or insensibility.
Fakirs use dhatura with charas or bhang.

Question 36.—I know people who have given up
bhang for liquor.

Question 43.—Smoking in company is carried on
in private places as well as in the drug shops. I
know such places in Bijnor where any one can
resort who wishes to smoke charas. I refer to
shops where the shop-keeper himself smokes
Money is not taken for admission to these places.
The people frequenting these places are ill-conducted
as they chaff passers-by including the women.
People do also smoke in the licensed charas shops.

Question 46.—I have not seen cases of insanity
caused by excessive use of charas, but I have heard
of such; that is to say, I have heard of people
becoming insensible and not recovering for a long
time. I have not heard of people becoming really
insane, though their intellect was impaired. I
have never heard of any one being sent to the asy-
lum on account of charas. I have not heard of any
one going insane from use of dhatura.

Question 59.—It is the vice of charas which is
increasing among the Hindus of middle classes
from all castes. The sale of charas is increasing,
and the habit is more apparent than formerly
With reference to the first of my proposals for
reform, I can think of no cheaper intoxicating drug
to which the people could resort to strengthen the
reduced drug issued by Government. I do not
consider charas more harmful than liquor. It is
possible to stop the poor man's intoxicant, but not
that of the rich man. I should however like to
ee all intoxicants made less accessible.

224. Evidence of JOWALA SAHAI, Municipal Commissioner, Mohulla Durzee Chowk,
                                                               Barcilly.

1.  I have received information on the subject of
drugs from various undermentioned sources :—1st,
from travelling into the interior of the country;
2nd, from Hindu devotees.

2.  Ganja is known by this very name in this
city of Barcilly. But charas is sometimes termed
sulfa also. Ganja is generally produced in the
north of the country at the foot of the Himalaya
mountains, including the Punjab, and charas is also
manufactured and exported from the same direction.
This district does not produce it. Bhang comes
from the abovementioned places as well as from

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