204 
NOTE UPON INDIA OPIUM. 
Through the kindness of Dr. James H. Bradford, for 
many years a resident of Canton, I am indebted far 
some notes, which were communicated to him by Capt. 
John Gover, formerly of ship Samarang, who had lived at 
Linfin fo rseveral years, as master and part owner of that 
opium ship, and who had paid particular attention to this 
extensive trade. The following experiments were made 
by Capt. Gover, in accordance with the Chinese mode of 
preparing opium for smoking. 
Half a cake of Patna opium, weighing 26 oz., 19 dwt., troy, 
having 2 oz. 3 dwt., 9 grs. of the outermost part of the skin 
laid aside, was put into a very thin hemispherical brass vessel 
(capable of containing about 12.2 pints) with about six pints of 
spring water, and placed on a brisk fire. At first, the mixture 
was seldom stirred, but when rather more than half the water 
had been evaporated, the stirring by means of a wooden 
spatula was without intermission. When of the consistence 
of a soft extract, half of it was placed in another vessel exactly 
like the first, and the evaporation continued in the two 
vessels by placing them alternately on the fire. The fire was 
now considerably damped, by throwing over the charcoal the 
burnt ashes from below. The exsiccation was continued by 
spreading the mass over the inner surface of the pans, and 
within about an inch and a half of the rim, the thickness of 
one-fifth of an inch. The pans continued to be alternately 
upon the fire, and the surface was often changed by mixing 
the whole well with the spatula and carefully re-spreading. 
At length, the fire having been diminished to a very low 
state, and without smoke or flame, the pans were inverted 
for two or three minutes at a time, pressed with the fingers, 
to which it did not stick, and allowed for a few minutes 
to cool. Lastly, the masses were cut by means of a knife 
into lines similar to the meridional lines on a globe. 
The exsiccation was now finished, the mass, after it had 
been allowed to cool, was broken up, and about eight pints 
of spring water added, and the whole allowed to remain 
at rest for twenty-four hours. Next day the cold infusion 
