Thus, a hard drinker appears dull and
heavy until under the influence of his secret destroyer when he
brightens up and, perhaps, shines in conversation; but every
reaction requires a stronger amount of stimulant to lessen its
effect, until mind and body at length become involved in the
common ruin.
The seed of the lotus is a narcotic of a mild description, and it
is carefully gathered when ripe and eaten by the natives.
The lotus is seen in two varieties in Ceylon - the pink and the
white. The former is the most beautiful, and they are both very
common in all tanks and sluggish streams. The leaves are larger
than those of the waterlily, to which they bear a great
resemblance, and the blossoms are full double the size. When the
latter fade, the petals fall, and the base of the flower and
seed-pod remains in the shape of a circular piece of honeycomb,
full of cells sufficiently large to contain a hazel-nut. This is
about the size of the seed, but the shape is more like an acorn
without its cup. The flavor is pleasant, being something like a
filbert, but richer and more oily.
Stramonium (Datura stramonium), which is a powerful narcotic, is
a perfect weed throughout the island, but it is not used by the
natives otherwise than medicinally, and the mass of the people
are ignorant of its qualities, which are only known to the
Cingalese doctors.
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