No.
361
Hongkong.
Sir,
Enclosure!
Sup[rem]e, with Love 2. 27th September, 1904.
46
C
1.
57970
# 5 NOV
Government House,
Hongkong, 6th October, 1904.
I have the honour to transmit for the signification of His Majesty's pleasure Ordinance No. 10 of 1904 entitled "An Ordinance to amend the Prepared Opium Ordinance, 1901," and the Attorney-General's report thereon.
2.
The origin of this legislation was a complaint made as far back as December last by the Opium Farmer that owing to the increased price of Prepared Opium there had been a large increase in the consumption of what are known as Opium Pills and Opium Wine, originally intended for the cure of the habit of smoking Opium, which being manufactured outside the Colony of cheap Chinese Opium or within the Colony of Opium Dross were much cheaper than Prepared Opium and were being used, as he alleged, as a substitute for it.
The Farmer stated that he had failed in a prosecution he had instituted against the vendors of these pills under Section 10 of Ordinance No. 8 of 1891 because it could not be proved that the Opium contained in the pills was prepared Opium as defined by the Ordinance, the Government Analyst being unable to state as a fact that the Opium had been subjected to artificial heat.
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
ALFRED LYTTELTON, K.C., M.P.
&c., &c., &c.
800
8cc...
3.