different preparations of opium to old opium smokers First, opium as prepared by the opium farmer, which contains 7 per cent of morphia; secondly, the opium farmer's prepared opium with 10 per cent. of morphia added; thirdly, similar prepared opium with 20 per cent of morphia added, fourthly, the opium farmer's prepared opium deprived of its morphia Now the opium smoker states that the first and third are "good," that with the morphia extracted "fairly good but not so good as the first and third." Number two with the 10 per cent. of morphia added is said to be "not very good" Now the opium smoker cannot detect any difference between the farmer's prepared opium containing 7 per cent of morphia, and the same with 20 per cent. of morphia added, nor does he detect much difference between those two and opium with all the morphia extracted. That is to say he hardly recognises any difference between 25 per cent of morphia in the drug and none at all, and does not recognise any difference at all between 7 per cent of morphia and 25 per cent, which he certainly would do if he ate it In fact the great principle of the opium, morphia, in smoking seems to vanish, certainly it in no way affects the smokers
43 Now, I have had opium eaters under my care in Gaols in India and Assam, and among Khalassic crews on board ship, and if they had been deprived of their opium as the opium smokers have been the consequences would have been serious
44 I can also speak from personal experience. I have eaten opium till I could consume half an ounce daily, and I can understand the fascination of that habit, and fully appreciate the difficulty of leaving it off. I have myself smoked three mace of the opium farmer's prepared opium within an hour without the slightest effect. I have watched other Europeans do the same, as they admitted to their astonishment, with no effect either. I counted their pulses and took their temperature, neither of which were altered by smoking in the slightest degree.
45. Three mace is equivalent to twelve pipes, and a pipe every five minutes is certainly more than a smoker would get through had he to load for himself. The actual smoking is but three long inhalations to each pipe, but the loading takes time. An old opium smoker always prepared our pipes for us, and watched that they were fairly and properly smoked
46. No opium smoker among the Chinese smokes with the idea of procuring sleep, being naturally tired he may take a pipe or two before going to sleep, but with no intention of helping him to sleep
47. An opium smoker visits a friend who offers him a pipe, and they lie smoking and chatting between the pipes for hours, just as a European offers wine to a friend. The Chinaman does not expect his visitor to go off to sleep and snore like a hog, any more than the European expects his friend to get drunk and make a beast of himself.
48. That it is costly and expensive as a habit there is no denial, and in order to procure this luxury unless a well to do man, the Chinaman must deprive himself and his family of many comforts and necessaries. A consumption of 15 mace a day means an expenditure of $1.20 daily, or $438.00 a year, say £80. One mace or eight cents worth of opium daily is equal (allowing 30 days to the month) to $3.40, a pretty hole in the income of a man who earns say six dollars a month, and many smoke that amount who earn a good deal less than six dollars a month
49. So far, what I have said concerning opium smoking in my reports has dealt with facts and figures known to myself to be correct, I have given nothing on hearsay A man of the western races who would take to such a habit as opium smoking must be a miserable object, a habit that requires you to muddle away more than an hour loading a pipe in order to get five minutes' smoke, for each pipe, takes about five minutes to load, and less than thirty seconds to smoke. One can understand a tobacco pipe that will last half an hour, take only a few seconds to load, and will allow you to read, write and do a hundred other things at the same time; at least I can, being a smoker myself, but the opium smoker is a complete puzzle to me to find out what pleasure he derives from the habit, all I can see in it is a waste of time and money
TEMPORARY LUNATIC ASYLUM.
50. This is still in the wretched buildings before described in my previous Annual Reports, which in the event of any atmospheric disturbance not amounting to a Typhoon requires the removal of the patients for their safety to the Police Cells.
51. The number admitted last year was eight, seven were discharged, some relieved, some sent to their native places. One woman remains There were no deaths.
TUNG WA HOSPITAL.
52. The total number of patients admitted to the Chinese Hospital during the year was 1,434, as compared with 1,292 in 1881; among these 628 died as compared with 569 in 1881. The number of out patients treated was 67,158 as compared with 79,845 in 1881.
53. Chinese rarely enter a Hospital unless they are so ill as to be unable to work to support themselves, or are in the last extremity of disease, having a great dislike to any restraint on their freedom of action; it is this that accounts for the large percentage of deaths in this institution.
different preparations of opium to old opium smokers First, opium as prepared by the opium farmer, which contains 7 per cent of morphia; secondly, the opium farmer's prepared opium with 10 per cent. of morphia added; thirdly, similar prepared opium with 20 per cent of morphia added, fourthly, the opium farmer's prepared opium deprived of its morphia Now the opium smoker states that the first and third are "good," that with the morphia extracted "fairly good but not so good as the first and third." Number two with the 10 per cent. of morphia added is said to be "not very good" Now the opium smoker cannot detect any difference between the farmer's prepared opium containing 7 per cent of morphia, and the same wrth 20 per cent. of morphia added, nor does he detect much difference between those two and opium with all the morphia extracted. That is to say he hardly recognises any difference between 25 per cent of morphia in the drug and none at all, and does not recognise any difference at all between 7 per cent of morphia and 25 per cent, which he certainly would do if he ate it In fact the great principle of the opium, morphia, in smoking seems to vanish, certainly it in no way affects the smokers
43 Now, I have had opium eaters under my care in Gaols in India and Assam, and among Khalassic crews on board ship, and if they had been deprived of their opium as the opium smokers have been the consequences would have been serious
44 I can also speak from personal experience. I have eaten opium till I could consume half an ounce daily, and I can understand the fascination of that habit, and fully appreciate the difficulty of leaving it off. I have myself smoked three mace of the opium farmer's prepared opium within an hour without the slightest effect. I have watched other Europeans do the same, as they admitted to their astonishment, with no effect either. I counted their pulses and took their temperature, neither of which were altered by smoking in the slightest degree.
45. Three mace is equivalent to twelve pipes, and a pipe every five minutes is certainly more than a smoker would get through had he to load for himself. The actual smoking is but three long inhalations to each pipe, but the loading takes time. An old opium smoker always prepared our pipes for us, and watched that they were fairly and properly smoked
46. No opium smoker among the Chinese smokes with the idea of procuring sleep, being naturally tired he may take a pipe or two before going to sleep, but with no intention of helping him to sleep
47. An opium smoker visits a friend who offers him a pipe, and they lie smoking and chatting between the pipes for hours, just as a European offers wine to a friend. The Chinaman does not expect his visitor to go off to sleep and snore like a hog, any more than the European expects his friend to get drunk and make a beast of himself.
48. That it is costly and expensive as a habit there is no denial, and in order to procure this luxury unless a well to do man, the Chinaman must deprive himself and his family of many comforts and necessaries. A consumption of 15 mace a day means an expenditure of $1.20 daily, or $438 00 a year, say £80. One mace or eight cents worth of opium daily is equal (allowing 30 days to the month) to $3.40, a pretty hole in the income of a man who earns say six dollars a month, and many smoke that amount who earn a good deal less than six dollars a month
49. So far, what I have said concerning opium smoking in my reports has dealt with facts and figures known to myself to be correct, I have given nothing on hearsay A man of the western races who would take to such a habit as opium smoking must be a miserable object, a habit that requires you to muddle away more than an hour loading a pipe in order to get five minutes' smoke, for each pipe, takes about five minutes to load, and less than thirty seconds to smoke. One can understand a tobacco pipe that will last half an hour, take only a few seconds to load, and will allow you to read, write and do a hundred other things at the same time; at least I can, being a smoker myself, but the opium smoker is a complete puzzle to me to find out what pleasure he derives from the habit, all I can see in it is a waste of time and money
TEMPORARY LUNATIC ASYLUM.
50. This is still in the wretched buildings before described in my previous Annual Reports, which in the event of any atmospheric disturbance not amounting to a Typhoon requires the removal of the patients for their safety to the Police Cells.
51. The number admitted last year was eight, seven were discharged, some relieved, some sent to their native places. One woman remains There were no deaths.
TUNG WA HOSPITAL.
52. The total number of patients admitted to the Chinese Hospital during the year was 1,434, as compared with 1,292 in 1881; among these 628 died as compared with 569 in 1881. The number of out patients treated was 67,158 as compared with 79,845 in 1881.
53. Chinese rarely enter a Hospital unless they are so ill as to be unable to work to support them. selves, or are in the last extremity of disease, having a great dislike to any restraint ирод their freedom of action; it is this that accounts for the large percentage of deaths in this institution.
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