An Opium Harvest.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue III, 11 November 1890, Page 2

An Opium Harvest.

Mr Alexander Hosie, of H. B. N Consular service in China, who hai ■pent three years in the western portion of the empire, thus detcribti the harvest of opium in a va ley on thp Yungtsze, extending for miles : — Fields of white and purple equalled in number the patches of whe:it, barley, and rape. "Where the flowers had fallen the peas-<m r 8 principally women and children, were busy harvesting the juic*. The tools u«ed in the operations are simple but effective. Towards even* iug the peasants may be seen moving in the poppy fields -ach armed with a short wooden handle, from one of the ends of which protudfi three and sometimes four points of brass or copper blades, firmly inserted in the wool. Seising a capsule with the left hand, the operator with his right hand inserts the points of the hades near the top of the capsule, and draws them downwards o the stem of the plant. From the incisions thus made a creamy juice exudes, which becomes of a d.irk brown co'our. This ig scraped off in the early morning by im-ans of a short curved knife, and deposited in an oarthenware bowl the contents of which are afterwards fir> dor left in the sun to dry. In this way the weight is reduced about one half, nnd the opium is then ready for boiling. The whole process is simple, and may be ace mplished by the women and children of the family, thereby permitting the more ablo-bodifd to attend to the other farm duties, thus reducing the price of labour and consequently the cost of the drug. The bleeding fe the capsule is continued until tho flow of juice is e-hausted.