The Online Reefer Madness Teaching Museum
Bulletin Bureau of Criminal Investigation
- New York State
Police Vol. 16 No. 3 1951
MARIHUANA
Click Photo To Enlarge
Much has been said
about marihuana smoking. Some
authorities claim that it is one of the many causes of crime; others claim
marihuana is smoked merely for sexual stimulation; while still others bitterly
condemn its ruining of morals and health of school children.
Very frequently, we read of the police seizing thousands of dollars worth
of the marihuana plant found in somebody's backyard.
Vicious crimes are blamed on the effects of marihuana.
But what is marihuana? What
effect has it upon the human body? How
can we recognize it? As a
scientific crime detection laboratory, we are called upon to analyze plants
suspected of being marihuana but before discussing identification tests, let us
briefly review the history of marihuana.
The
recognition of the hemp plant begins almost with the beginning of history.
Allusions to its narcotic properties are found at a somewhat later date
and clear descriptions of the popular abuse of hemp drugs are found at a still
later date.
There
is tradition to the effect that the Emperor of China, Shen-Nung in the 28th
century B. C. taught his people to cultivate hemp for its fiber.
There is clearer documentation of its common existence during the period
1200-500 B.C. A knowledge of the
narcotic properties of hemp is indicated from the biography of the physician
Hoan-tho who lived about 220 A.D. by the following quotation:
"But
if the malady resided in the parts on which the needle, the cautery or the
liquids were incapable of acting, for example, in the bones, in the stomach or
in the intestine, he administered a preparation of hemp (Ma-Yo), and in the
course of several minutes an insensibility developed as if the patient had been
plunged into drunkenness or deprived of life.
Then, according to the case, he performed the opening, the incision or
the amputation and relieved the cause of the malady; then he apposed the tissues
by sutures and applied liniments. After
a certain number of days or the end of a month, the patient finds he has
recovered without having experienced the slightest pain during the
operation."
The
intoxication obtained from hemp drugs has evidently been especially adapted to
the Hindu temperament and is today so much a part of their life and customs that
the government recently declared that it was neither practical nor advisable to
attempt to exterminate the practice. The indulgence has enjoyed a fairly reputable status in
certain phases of the Hindu religion and the plant itself has been accorded a
certain divine status by- early Hindu mythology.
To the Hindu, the hemp plant is holy.
This, however, is not true of China.
The existence of any generalized abuse of this narcotic, apparently, has
not been described for the Chinese. in either ancient or modern literature.
Possibly there is a temperamental incompatibility which also explains the
preference for opium.
From
this various ancient literature there is indisputable evidence that the hemp
plant existed at that time and was a reasonably common plant and that certain
people were in the habit of resorting to the use of the drug in order to produce
an excited type of light headedness. According
to records, this habit has been inherited by later centuries.
The
New London Dispensatory of 1682 states that cannabis seed "cures the cough
and jaundice but fills the head with vapors".
The French Materia Medica of 1781, mentions only that the oil of the seed
is used as an emolient. A French
Dictionary of Medical Science in 1813 states that the only part of the plant
used in Europe as a medicament is the seed, which was reputedly useful in
treating venereal diseases. At
the same time, it is stated that the Persians, Turks and Egyptians used hemp
preparations in order to produce a sort of agreeable delirium with voluptuous
dreams and intense sexual desires.
These
various references make it clear that there was not generalized propagation of
the hemp leaf smoking in early Europe. There
was some recognition of the effects of hemp drugs but this knowledge was based
almost entirely upon reports emanating from Asia and Africa.
It is a curious point that the type of hemp leaf smoking which has
recently appeared in certain Parisian and London sections is known there as an
"American" vice. The
practice apparently has traversed a sort of geographical circle proceeding, in
order, from Asia through Africa, South America.
North America and now, to a recognizable degree at least, into some of
the capitals of Europe. Various
literature in the 1927-1937 era mentions Iraq, Palestine, Turkey, Russia and
Northern Africa as some of the many ports in the hemp drug traffic.
The
variety of preparations and the numerous methods of consuming the drug in
different countries has resulted in a confusing nomenclature (See table of
preparations). The powdered residue
of the dried tops and leaves is the hashish of the Near East and Egypt, the
takouri of Tunis, the kif of Morocco and the marihuana of the United States.
Marihuana
smoking has also penetrated into South Africa, Central America, Cuba, Mexico,
Canada and the United States. During
the past few years, there has been general recognition that a new type of drug
vice existed in this country. This
practice of marihuana smoking has been described as a matter of national concern
by numerous government officials. H.
J. Anslinger, U. S. Commissioner of Narcotics, in his official report for
1936 said: "The rapid development particularly during 1935 and 1936 of a
widespread traffic in cannabis or marihuana, as it is more generally known in
the United States, is regarded with much concern by the Bureau of Narcotics.
Ten years ago there was little traffic in this drug except in part of the
Southwest. The situation is
especially fraught with danger because the abuse of this drug is being carried
as a new habit to groups which have not been heretofore contaminated by drug
addiction. A total of thirty-one
states reported seizures of varying quantity of the drug and destruction of
considerable areas of growing plants."
As
far as it can be ascertained, marihuana was first seen and used in New Orleans
in 1910. The practice was not very
extensive at that time but rapidly became more and more a matter of common
knowledge among the vicious characters of the city. These types served as a center for distribution to still
larger groups, notably school children. There
were various scattered protests and appeals from alarmed parents but no official
action was taken until 1926, at which time a local newspaper sent out reporters
who worked for weeks uncovering first-hand information which was later printed
in a series of articles. According
to these reports, all the city's supply was drawn from Havana, Tampico, Vera
Cruz and a small quantity from Texas. Some of the weed imported in New Orleans found its way as far
north as Cleveland, Ohio, where is was smoked in exclusive men's clubs.
Smoking this weed had become so widespread that peddlers swamped the city
wherever demand was greatest. The
most significant finding came when the reporters not only heard but observed a
large number of boys of school age buy and smoke "reefers".
Marihuana
cigarettes could be bought almost as readily as sandwiches; their cost was two
for a quarter. The
school children solved the problem of cost by pooling pennies among the members
of a group and then passed the cigarettes from one to another, all of the
"pulls" being carefully counted.
During the next few years, New Orleans experienced a crime wave which
unquestionably was greatly aggravated by the influence of this drug habit.
Youngsters known to be "muggle heads"
fortified with this narcotic proceeded to shoot down police officers, bank
clerks and even casual bystanders. The
district attorney at that time declared that many of the crimes in New Orleans
and the South were committed by criminals who relied on the drug to give them
false courage and freedom from restraint.
As
early as 1921, marihuana was mentioned in the periodicals as a new drug
addiction in New York State. During the existence of the WPA, workers in cooperation with
the police and health department squads specially trained to recognize
marihuana, were placed on duty throughout New York City to eradicate the weed
from vacant lots. In 1935, during
July and June, 260 vacant lots were cleared of 170 tons of marihuana plants by
these squads. In addition to New
York City, marihuana has been found growing in the State as far north as the St.
Lawrence River and as far west as Erie County.
In
1936, almost 400 hundred tons of marihuana in one form or another were seized in
illicit traffic in the United States, while numerous crimes were traced to its
abuse. The authorities of the
Federal government responsible for the prevention of crime and those charged
with the prevention and cure of narcotic drug addiction were not slow in
recognizing the seriousness of the situation.
In 1937, special legislation was enacted imposing a certain tax on the
production, manufacture, sale and transfer of marihuana.
New York State also in 1937 amended Article 22 of the Uniform Narcotic
Drug Act to include traffic in Cannabis Sativa.
[
picture Note almost all
pictures have been seen elsewhere- ]
Upper
Side of Leaflet
The hemp plant,
Cannabis Sativa or the marihuana plant, is an annual plant growing each year
from seed. It has a rigid stalk
attaining a height of three to sixteen feet, obtusely four cornered, more or
less fluted or channeled, and with well marked nodes at intervals of four to
twenty inches, The number and size of branches and leaves is governed to a great
extent to the proximity of other plants. When
planted thickly, there are neither leaves nor branches except near the extreme
top of the stalk. On the other
hand, a plant growing in the open presents a bushy appearance since branching
occurs throughout the entire length.
The
leaves of the marihuana plant are compound.
Each of the larger leaves consist of five to eleven separate leaves,
generally seven in number. Each
leaflet is characteristically hair-covered, serrated (with notched edges) and
veined. The upper side of the leaf
is dark green in color, while the lower side is a lighter green.
Marihuana
belong to the class of plants known as bisexual, this is, the geminate or male
function and the pistillate or female function are invested in separate plants.
These two types cannot be differentiated with any accuracy until the
flowers appear. After pollenation
is complete, the male plant, having fulfilled its function, slowly withers and
dies.
[picture
]
Underside
of Leaflet
The male flowers
appear conspicuously in sprays about six inches in length at the tops of stalks
and branches. They shed pollen
profusely. The color is described
as a light greenish-yellow. The
main stalk of the flowering top of both the male and female plant is thrown out
from the stalk or branch immediately above a leaf just as the branches are
thrown out from the lower portion of the stalk.
These twigs, each above a leaf, occur alternately rather than beside each
other, and each throws out further leaves and branch twigs arranged in the same
fashion. The latter bears flowers
and fruit or in turn branch further.
As
the female plant approaches maturity the fruit commonly referred to as
"seeds" appear. They are
individually enclosed in "hulls" or "pods" which are green
and quite viscid or sticky to the touch. The
mature fruit is light greenish-yellow to brown in color and is ovoid in shape.
It is divided into two segments by a rather sharp ridge extending around
the greater circumference and is covered with "lacy" marks.
The interior of the seed is filled with a white, meaty sub stance which
superficially resembles cocoanut meat. The
fruit and "hulls" are especially valuable aids in the recognition of
marihuana, especially in microscopic examination.
[picture]
Fruit
in Hulls
The cultivation of
hemp has been long carried on in Japan, China, India, Russia, the Mediterranean
area, Chile and the United States. When
it is also recognized that hemp is grown extensively in many parts of Africa and
South America, it is evident that there are few inhabited localities where hemp
cannot be grown successfully. When
once introduced, it often becomes naturalized and proceeds to grow wild.
In northern localities throughout the United States, it is frequently
seen as a roadside weed. The wide diversity of conditions under which hemp is grown
has served to exaggerate any distinctions between the numerous forms and
varieties. For instance, in point
of size, the gradations range from the giant variety which attains a height of
20 feet to the Moroccan "kif" which only reaches a height of 1 to 3
feet.
The perpetuation of
cultivated hemp has probably been due more to its value as a fiber plant than to
its narcotic properties. Fiber
production has been- a normal and orderly activity, while drug production has
most usually been considered a disreputable enterprise.
In the United States, the cultivation of fiber hemp has probably had very
little influence in developing the drug habit.
[picture]
Fruit-Note
lacy markings
History indicates
that hemp cultivation was begun in the American colonies as early as 1632.
The hemp fiber is chiefly used for making ropes, twine and cord and the
ravelings of hemp rope (oakum), is used for calking seams in boats and
machinery. Hemp seed oil is used
for making soaps, paints and varnishes and crushed seed residues are sometimes
used as cattle feed and fertilizers. There have been instances in which bird seed has been
deliberately used to grow marihuana for illicit purposes.
There have also been instances in which discarded bird seed,
unintentionally dumped in vacant lots, resulted in good growing crops of
marihuana. The plant further tends
to perpetuate itself by dropping the seed which germinates and grows the
following year. It has also been
observed that birds will pick up the seed from the mature plants and spread the
growth of marihuana by accidental distribution of the seed.
Hemp drugs are
ordinarily introduced into the body, either by smoking or by swallowing,
although there are other possible modes of administration.
The method of
ingestion by smoking did not become general until about the 16th century.
There is, however, suggestive evidence in ancient literature that vapors
of the burning plant were inhaled something after the primitive manner in which
African savages smoke this drug today. African
natives of the present time construct mounds in which burning hemp
[picture]
Typical
Sample of Marihuana-Note twigs, leaves and fruit
[picture]
Twig
is covered with dirt
or other material and the vapors allowed to pass out through a limited number of
holes or hollow canes. The
inhalation of such vapors sometimes amounts to a social or religious ceremony.
Some
authorities argue that the water pipes of Asia Minor and Northern Africa were
developed first for marihuana smoking and only later for tobacco smoking.
Water pipes are constructed according to many unique designs and
patterns. The principle of the
pipes consists simply in permitting the vapors from the burning material to be
drawn or bubbled through water before they are inhaled.
Ingestion by this procedure is a relatively slow process and this is a
desirable feature of this form of indulgence.
The physiologically active component is an aromatic oil which is so very
slightly volatile that its actual vapor pressure at the tip of the pipe must be
very slight. Probably the bulk of
the effective material is being carried as suspended oil droplets which are not
deposited by the bubbling through water.
Smoking
in the cigarette form is a modern adaptation of the older practice.
The time necessary for the performance is considerably shortened and very
probably a higher percentage of the active oil is obtained since this method
involves relatively little condensation. The
oil is progressively distilled down the cigarette toward the smoker's mouth.
The bulk of the oil remains a short distance from the burning end and is
only inhaled by the smoker if the cigarette is smoked to a very short butt.
This fact is well recognized by experienced smokers who sometimes hold
the cigarette in the split end of a match and thus are able to smoke the
cigarette down to a small fraction of an inch.
Such a holder is known as a "crutch" and the butt of the
cigarette as a "Roach". The
latter term must be related to the Mexican folk song in which the cockroach is
depicted as an addict of marihuana. The
shortened butts contain sufficient potency that they frequently can be passed
from person to person. Another
technique of the experienced cigarette smoker is the inhalation of a
considerable quantity of air along with the vapors.
The vapors are fairly irritant and this procedure brings about
considerable choking and coughing. Sometimes
the smoke is blown into the cupped hands and re-inhaled through the nose.
The identifying feature of marihuana cigarette is the odor which
resembles burning hay and is very characteristic.
If the inhalation is continued after the desired effects have been
produced, the subject loses some self control, manifests a desire to laugh at
every thing and becomes very talkative. However,
in the space of some twenty to thirty minutes, the normal condition recurs and
the subject feels rested and refreshed. Some
consider that smoking cannabis is a satisfactory expedient in combating fatigue,
headache and exhaustion, whereas the oral ingestion of cannabis results chiefly
in a narcotic effect which may cause serious alarm.
The
smoking of cannabis as a medicinal has been very
limited. Among certain tribes in
Africa, it is said that hemp is smoked as a means of alleviating the pains of
childbirth.
Cigarettes,'
which are also referred to as "reefers" or "muggles", are
usually hand-rolled, although occasionally some will appear as if they have been
prepared on a home-type cigarette roller. The
paper used in marihuana cigarettes is often of double thickness, which is
necessary because broken pieces of twigs and leaves readily pierce the single
thickness of ordinary cigarette paper. The
cigarettes are smoked in the normal manner as previously described.
[picture
of cigarettes -- see .jpg file]
Reefers-Marihuana
Cigarettes
[picture
- see .jpg file]
outside
of Paper Folder
Our
experience obtained from the examination of many marihuana cigarettes has
revealed a peculiarity; most of the cigarettes are made with a particular brand
cigarette paper; namely, Bambu. This
Bambu paper is a product of Spain and undoubtedly is slightly cheaper than
American made cigarette paper. Although
there is no known definite reason why Bambu paper is desired, it is felt that
the persons making marihuana cigarettes are more familiar with this Spanish
brand than the American brands.
The
accompanying illustration shows the wording on the outside of the packet of
Bambu paper. The second photograph
shows the unusual watermark which can be readily detected.
In
our experience, we have never found a cigarette made with ordinary tobacco in
which Bambu paper has been used. We
have found some marihuana cigarettes not made with Bambu paper but in the
majority of cases, Bambu has been used.
[picture
- see .jpg file]
Bambu
Watermark
Marihuana
preparations of the past were taken most frequently by swallowing either in the
liquid or solid form. The liquid
preparations were most commonly alcoholic although there have been some who
claimed therapeutic activity for aqueous solutions and some who have used the
aqueous solutions as a drink of indulgence.
The active drug is extremely water-insoluble, so these preparations must
necessarily be very weak. The
alcoholic solutions were first made with wine and after the development of the
"spirit" still, the solutions were made more predominantly alcoholic.
The crude leaves and tops, the exuded resin and various types of extract
have been swallowed directly. Honey,
syrup, aromatic, etc., have been blended and added according to every
conceivable recipe. The Mexicans
eat marihuana with chili. Oral
administration is characterized by a relatively slow development of effects.
Large doses usually act more quickly than small doses.
Marihuana
affects most strongly those functions of the brain which are concerned with
sensation and emotion. Accordingly,
the definition of such effects is chiefly dependent upon subjective
interpretations rather than on the testimony of psychiatrists.
Such interpretations of effects obtained with marihuana are reasonably
significant since most stages of its action do not incapacitate the subject's
ability to analyze or describe his conditions.
The description, moreover, can be supplemented by retrospection since the
memories of an addict's experience are usually very vivid.
It is well known that the mental states produced by marihuana can vary
through all the shades of emotion ranging from agonizing torture to sublime
exaltation.
The
effects of marihuana on people unaccustomed to its use have frequently been
described as:
1.
A feeling of well being and stimulation with sometimes alternating
sensations of warmth and cold.
2.
A period of mental confusion with hallucinations which are often of an
erotic nature.
3.
A period of depression followed by sleep.
Before falling asleep, the subject sometimes has the illusion of a double
personality.
Medical
experts agree on the complete unpredictability of the effects of marihuana on
different individuals. A small dose
taken by one subject may bring about intense intoxication, raving fits of
criminal assaults. Another can
consume large amounts without experiencing any reaction except stupefaction.
It is this uncertain effect which makes marihuana one of the most
dangerous drugs known.
[picture]
Growth
of Marihuana in Field
[picture]
After
Spraying of Weed Killer
There
is a certain degree of addiction when marihuana is smoked for an extended period
of time. Not all, but a great many
users find it necessary to take larger doses. Still more serious than the degree of addiction to marihuana
is the number of instances in which its use leads to the heroin habit.
[table
- Preparations used in the abuse of cannabis sative]
Marihuana
addicts have developed a peculiar vernacular for use in mentioning the drug.
Here in the United States, the following is used to designate the drug:
Muggles,
Mooter, Moota, Reefers, Greefa, Mary Warner, Mary Weaver, Mary Jane, Indian Hay,
Loco Weed, Love Weed, joy Smoke, Giggle Smoke, Bambalacha, Mohasky, Mu, Moocah,
The Weed, Grass, Tea. In New
Orleans "Pig Latin" is used as a sort of code, as Ea-Tay, Tea; Eed-Way
for Weed; also "Eed-Waggles". "Specials"
are cigarettes which cost more and are more potent than "singles",
sometimes "gold-leaf specials".
Muggle-head-An
habitual user of marihuana.
Crutch-Holder
made with a split match for a short butt.
Roach-Short
cigarette butt.
Manicuring-Trii-nming
the stalks of leaves and tops.
Foxy-The
condition obtained after smoking marihuana.
Apparently means to become "apprehensive and intuitive".
Floating-Refers
to the feeling of lightness and unreality.
The
methods of identification for marihuana are microscopic examination and chemical
analysis. The general procedure in
microscopic examination of a suspected sample is the observation of the
following characteristics:
Leaves
The
leafy portions are green, brown spotted or brown in color and are
characteristically veined and serrated.
Hairs
A
characteristic warty appearance observed on marihuana leaves is due to the
presence of one-celled, more or less curved, non-glandular hairs which contain
at their base, a "cystolith" of calcium carbonate (see cut).
Application of a few drops of Dilute Hydrochloric Acid will produce
effervescence, demonstrating the presence of carbonates.
The hairs which are observed are cystolith hairs and are very
characteristic. No plant material
which fails to show them can be marihuana.
Their presence is strongly indicative that a sample is marihuana, but, as
in all cases, no single criterion should be accepted as proof.
Seeds
Seeds
of the marihuana plant are usually greenish-yellow to brown in color, ovoid in
shape and have characteristic "lacy" markings.
They resemble small melons. When
the seeds are split open they will be found to contain a solid mass of white
fat-like substance, similar to cocoanut meat.
The
microscopic appearance of any suspected sample should always be compared with
known specimens.
The
standard chemical test used in identification is known as the Alkaline Beam
Test. The original Beam test is as
follows: The suspected material is extracted with petroleum ether of low boiling
point. The petroleum ether extract
is separated, filtered and evaporated to dryness in a small porcelain dish.
Extraction and evaporation should be carried out in the cold.
To the residue, is added a few drops of weak alcoholic solution of (Deci-Normal)
potassium hydroxide. The liquid is
then allowed to evaporate at room temperature.
In the presence of marihuana, a purple or red-dish-purple color gradually
develops which on dilution with water takes on a more bluish cast.
Since
this test was originally developed, there have been several modifications which
have proved more reliable. One of
these modified tests is the procedure followed by the Scientific Laboratory.
It consists of extracting the suspected material with approximately 15
cc. of ethyl acetate. Approximately, one-half gram of activated charcoal is added
in order to decolorize the extracted solution.
The charcoal solution is then filtered through a dense paper.
The filtrate is evaporated over a steam bath, using caution to exhaust
the vapors which are highly inflammable. To
the residue is added five drops of 2 per cent alcoholic potassium hydroxide
solution. A purple or violet color
indicates the presence of marihuana.
Physiological
tests, in addition to the chemical tests and microscopic examinations, are also
recommended by some investigators. Dogs
are recommended for this purpose.
In
order to destroy marihuana growth, the old reliable backbreaking method of
manually pulling the plants out by, the roots has been replaced by the use of
chemical sprays. Such chemicals as
2-4D have proven most efficacious. Other
chemicals such as potassium chlorate, potassium nitrate, gasoline and other
hydrocarbon solvents have also been successfully used to eradicate the plants
wherever found.
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