418 LATEX 



brown colour of varying depth, and is coarsely granular or more or 

 less smooth according to the variety (see below). It has a strong 

 characteristic and not unpleasant odour and a bitter taste. 



Several subvarieties of Turkey opium are recognised on the market. 

 The most important of these are the Karahissar, Ghiveh, and Boghaditz 

 opiums, which are largely used by pharmacists. Salonica, Tokat, 

 and Malatia opiums are known as ' soft shipping ' opiums ; as the 

 name indicates, the paste is usually, though not necessarily, soft ; 

 they are used by the morphine makers and are also exported to the 

 United States, the West Indies, Central and South America. Yerli 

 opium is also soft ; it is largely used for the manufacture of morphine. 



Salonica opium is characterised by its rougher coat, its (usually) 

 dark, smooth paste, its very high moisture content (up to, or even 

 exceeding, 35 per cent.), and its very high morphine content (usually 

 18 to 22 per cent, of the dried opium). ' Druggist's ' opium has 

 a smoother coat than the Salonica variety, contains about 22 to 

 26 per cent, of moisture and about 13 to 16' 5 per cent, of morphine, 

 calculated on the dried opium. 



2. Persian Opium is produced most largely in the neighbourhood 

 of Ispahan and Shiraz in the west and near Meshed in the north-east. 

 After collection the opium is kneaded, often with added gum, into a 

 homogeneous mass, which is then divided into brickshaped masses 

 about 15 cm. long ; after further drying these are wrapped in 

 red paper and tied round with red or sometimes yellow string. 

 Occasionally it is formed into bluntly conical masses weighing from 

 200 to 400 grammes each or short sticks or flat cakes, but these are 

 seldom seen. It is usually of a dark brown colour internally and quite 

 homogeneous, not exhibiting the granular appearance that characterises 

 much of the Turkey opium ; this is doubtless due to the method 

 of preparation. 



The bulk of the opium normally imported into England consists of 

 the Turkey and Persian drugs ; the latter is largely exported to South 

 America and elsewhere for smoking, but when sufficiently cheap is 

 used for the manufacture of morphine. 



3. Indian Opium. The chief opium-producing districts in India 

 are the central districts of the Ganges, including Behar, Benares, and 

 Patna, and the tablelands of Malwa which lie to the north-east of 

 Bombay, most of the drug being produced by licensed cultivators and 

 purchased by the Government. That which is destined for use in 

 India is dried in the sun until the moisture in it is reduced to 10 per 

 cent., and then made into flat cakes (Bengal abkari opium) or round 

 balls (Malwa opium) and wrapped in oiled paper. For the Chinese 

 market it is formed into round balls which are enveloped in cases made 

 of dried poppy petals, opium, and water, each cake with its shell 

 resembling a Dutch cheese in size and shape. 1 



1 Details- of the process will be found in the Phqrmqcographia Indica. 



