Page:Illustrations of China and Its People vol. I. 2ed edition.pdf/34

 A WHIFF OF OPIUM AT HOME.

THIS picture shows the method in which opium is smoked by the wealthier classes among the Chinese. The smoker here has leisure and money at his command, so that he is able to indulge freely in the use of the drug. His opium pipe is a formidable-looking instrument, not at all resembling the "hookah" of India, or the light tobacco pipe in use with us. It consists of a metal or bamboo tube, having at one end a wide mouthpiece, and closed at the other. The bowl, of metal, or sometimes porcelain, is usually very ornamental, and has a small aperture on the top into which it receives the drug, which is prepared by the Chinese in the form of an aqueous extract, by boiling the crude opium into the consistency of thick syrup. The smoker when he takes to his pipe must literally lay himself out for his work, and this he does by stretching himself on a bed or couch of polished wood, propping his head with a pillow of the same unyielding material. Near at hand he has a small opium lamp, over which, either he or his attendant, if he can afford one, roasts the tiny pellet of opium on a needle's point before placing it in the bowl of the pipe. All being now ready, the smoker brings his opium-charged bowl once more in contact with the flame and inhales the fume into his lungs, expelling the vapour by his mouth and nostrils when it has been retained for a short time in his body. He must now abandon himself to the influences of the drug, giving up all thought of business or occupation till the effects of the narcotic have passed away.

Opium-smoking is one of the most enslaving vices, which, when it has secured its victim, gradually poisons and destroys the finer feelings of his nature, causing him to neglect his business, dispose of his property, and even sever the sacred ties of kindred by selling his wife and children into slavery so that he may gratify his ruling passion. When once indulged in it is difficult, and sometimes dangerous, to throw off the habit. Were the pipe suddenly withdrawn a painful physical re-action would set in, and death itself has been known to ensue. The smoker may wean himself from the use of opium by taking gradually diminishing inward doses of the drug, which allay the craving for the pipe ; added to this, he must have nutritious food and tonics to restore the tone of his stomach. After a time his desire for the drug will pass off.

The charms of opium must at first be irresistible, as is shown by the multitude of its votaries : but when the habit has been ingrained these exhilarating influences dwindle, and a fearful craving succeeds, which the victim must satisfy at any cost. I know a remarkably clever painter of miniatures, a Hong-Kong Chinaman, who was ruined by opium-smoking at last. Five years ago I recollect him a handsome, fashionably-dressed youth ; his tail a model of perfect plaiting, and his head shaven as smooth as a billiard ball. No silks were more beautiful or richer than his ; while his finger nails, long as vultures' claws, were the envy of his companions and his own secret pride. This good-looking dandy was at that time in full work as a portrait-painter. Some years afterwards I fell in with him again — a shrunken, hollow-eyed, sallow-faced old man. He was still working at his craft, but only on two days a week, the rest of his time being uninterruptedly devoted to the demands of his opium pipe. This instance gives some notion as to the completeness with which the habit may master even young, successful and vigorous men. There are, I am told, many examples of temperate opium-smokers who adhere steadily to a moderate quantity of the narcotic — say a mace a day. I have no reason to doubt the statement ; but, as the practice among men of this class is kept as secret as possible, it is difficult to be certain on the matter.

AFTER DINNER.

THIS is an after-dinner gathering on the verandah of a Chinaman's house. The entire domestic circle smoke tobacco, but their pipes differ from our own. The old woman and her daughter use a pipe which resembles the " hookah," having a small compartment filled with water, for cooling and purifying the smoke. Paterfamilias is fondling and sucking the end of what appears to be a very formidable walking stick ; but it is in reality his favourite pipe, having a cherished history attached to it, and invested with a degree of individuality that appeals to the tenderest feelings of its proprietor. In this we have a trait that reminds us of the regard, bordering sometimes on insanity, which smokers in our own country bestow upon the blackened bowl of an ancient meerschaum. And here let me ask my reader's sympathy for a devoted husband, whom his wife's misguided behaviour drove to the verge of despair. This unfortunate woman, rejoicing, in the unselfishness of a