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The Hasheesh Eater – Fitz Hugh Ludlow

At the season of flowering, a resinous substance exudes and concretes on the slender stalks, leaves, and tops of the hemp plant in India, a sticky gum which causes the young stems to adhere together tenaciously in the bundles of gunjah.  Men, now dressed all in leather, are sent into the fields to run to and fro, sweeping the plants with their garments, from which afterwards they diligently gather the resin that has adhered.  This is the chirrus, wherein is all the narcotic virtue of the herb, all the seventh heaven of hasheesh intoxication for the Hindoo or Arab.  The most potent of it comes from Nepal. 

Bhang, or subjee, is the larger leaves and capsules of the cannabis compressed in balls and sticky layers, with here and there some flowers between.  Infused with water, it forms an intoxicating brew, to which, however, the Hindoos are not commonly addicted. 

Gunjah, mixed with tobacco and smoked in a pipe, is the shape of the drug which they popularly affect, and it is as gunjah that it is commonly sold in shops.  This comes in bundles, 24 of the plants entire, stalks, leaves, capsules and tops undisturbed and from which their resin has not been separated, adhering tenaciously.  Gunjah indeed, is the term proper to Hindostan, hasheesh being Arabic and used to denote the tops and tenderest parts of the plant, sun dried and powdered.