ONLY COUSINS

David Timmins says that hemp is marijuana (Forum, May 6). Although the two
plants are cousins, they are not the same plant. Delta-9
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is found in very small doses in hemp (around 1
percent), while the THC found in marijuana is almost 15 times that. The
only effect produced from smoking hemp is a bad headache.

Also, Timmins states that "it's no longer grown for oil, for rope, for
gunny sacks." This is entirely untrue. Twenty-nine countries have hemp
industries, including Great Britain, Canada, Germany, Austria, China,
Japan, France, Russia and Netherlands. In France, hemp is used for home
building materials, home insulation and plaster, as well as for the
well-known uses like clothing, shoes, rope and paper.

The sails on Columbus' ship were made of hemp. The original drafts of the
Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were written on hemp
paper. Henry Ford built a car from hemp, that could be fueled by hemp.
During World War II, the U.S. government encouraged farmers to grow hemp in
a program called "Hemp for Victory."

Thomas Jefferson and George Washington were both hemp farmers and, until
the 1920s, this country produced hemp. And there are many who still know
that hemp is a safe, useful, economical and environmentally friendly
alternative to non-renewable fossil fuels and the harvesting of our forests.

Jared and Shannon Herbert Midvale