40 On the Culture of Opium. 



chemists as being very deficient in morphia. When, there- 

 fore, any portion of Victoria produces an opium possessing 

 morphine properties of good standard, I think we sliould 

 fail in our duty did we not draw attention to the fact. The 

 opium in question, moderately dry, gave me on analysis 

 10 per cent, of morphia and 8 per cent, narcotina. Sample 

 of each I have the honour to exhibit. 



The cost of its growth and labour to collect in Victoria 

 is not now the time to discuss ; it is sufficient for our 

 purpose to point out that opium can be grown iu Gipps Land 

 — rich in active principles of fine aroma and colour, and 

 greatly soluble. 



An outhne of the mode of cultivating and collecting the 

 opium, as employed by these young men and witnessed by 

 myself, may be interesting, and may give some idea as to the 

 probable amount of labour needed if grown in large quantity. 



The amount of land under cultivation was one acre in 

 one of the mountain valleys by the Macallister River, the 

 soil being very loamy, rich in decayed vegetation, of a 

 chocolate colour, and very deep. The first sowing took 

 place in the latter part of July, and the second in 

 September. Half the acre was set apart for each sowing, in 

 drills, two and a-half feet apart, and each plant nine inches. 

 The plants grew freely and attained the height of six and seven 

 feet ; the number of capsules on each plant varied from four to 

 eight. These did not arrive at maturity together, so giving 

 great facility for the thorough exhaustion of each capsule. 

 The exact time when to commence tapping a capsule was 

 known by the petals falling off from the green pericarp. 

 The seed sown in July were full grown plants and ready 

 for opium collecting during the following December, and 

 those sown in September duiing January following. 



The capsules were fine and well rounded. The collecting 

 season was exceedingly hot ; but the great height of the 

 plants shaded the collectors, and so dense was the foliage 

 that a person working in one row could not see the person 

 collecting in the next. The time of the day for collecting 

 commenced at four o'clock in the afternoon and continued 

 until dark, from eight to nine o'clock. The person tapping- 

 chose out his capsules, and if for the first collection would, 

 with an instrument containing five lancet points, cut them 

 longitudinally sufficiently deep so as not to penetrate 

 through ; if for the second collection, would cut diagonally, 

 and if for the third, transversely. Three tappings appeared 



