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but the improper use of a Government label is a distinct aggravation of that offence, and should be punishable in itself. Accordingly, the sub-section in question makes illegal the possession of any label or wrapper of a kind used by the Superintendent unless such label or wrapper is either attached to a receptacle issued by the Superin- tendent and containing the full quantity of Government opium as issued, or else has been broken in such a way as to make it impracticable to use the label or wrapper again.
6. Section 36 of the Opium Ordinance, 1923, provides that every person who is proved to have had in his posses- sion any thing coutaining opium, or the documents of title to any thing containing opium shall, until the contrary is proved, he presumed to have been in possession of the opium. Section 6 of this Ordinance repeals that section and substitutes a new one which contains the following additional points which have been suggested by the cor- responding section in the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance :—
(a) The presumption is made to arise also upon proof of the possession of the keys of any box or drawer containing opium.
(4) The term documents of title is made to include a
baggage receipt.
(e) The presumption of knowledge is made to extend to knowledge of the kind of opium contained in the box or other receptacle. This is inserted because it is necessary in the charge to refer to some particular kind of opium, e.g., prepared opium or raw opium.
(d) It is expressly provided in sub-section (3) that the presumptions of the section will not be rebutted by mere proof that the accused never had physical possession of the opium in question.
7. Section 37 of the principal Ordinance provides that a certificate signed by the Superintendent as to the character or quantity of any opium shall be conclusive evidence of the facts stated therein. This was intended to obviate the uccessity of calling the analyst on every occasion. The section is, however, defective, because it makes no provi- sion for connecting any particular certificate with any particular lot of opium. Section 7 of this Ordinance re- peals the above section and substitutes a new section which, with the new form of certificate added to the principal Ordinance by section 8 of this Ordinance, will enable the certificate to be connected with the opium to which it relates. by means of the officer who receives the opium from the analyst and produces it in court.
9th December, 1929.
J. H. KEMP,
Attorney General.