COCA. 375 



assert that the use of coca produces all the evil results of 

 opium ; but this, from the evidence of many enlightened tra- 

 vellers, seems not to be the case. Taken immoderately, no 

 doubt it is injurious, — -as is tea, coffee, tobacco, or wine ; but 

 used as it generally is by the natives, it is to them a great 

 blessing. The valleys, however, most suitable for its cultiva- 

 tion are reputed to be unhealthy. 



So valuable was coca considered in the days of the Incas, 

 that divine honours were paid to it, and it was especially the 

 property of the sovereign. Even at the present day the 

 miners of Peru throw a quid of coca against the hard veins of 

 ore, under the belief that they are thereby more easily worked. 

 The natives also sometimes put coca in the mouth of the 

 dying man, believing that if he can taste the fragrant leaf it 

 is a sure sign of his future happiness. 



Its moderate use is considered wholesome ; and European 

 travellers who have chewed coca state that they could thus 

 endure long abstinence from food without inconvenience, and 

 that it enabled them to ascend precipitous mountain-sides 

 with a feeling of lightness and elasticity, and without losing 

 breath. 



