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capacity for alcohol, and their potations lack the dignity and decorum which marked their earlier indulgence,
The opium dens in Tongyueh, Talifu and indeed in all the large cities are closed, though it is not difficult to obtain the drug or even to smoke at one of the clubs for those who are known, but opium pipes, lamps, and other accessories can no longer be seen on the streets. Smokers are registered in Ssumao in accordance with Imperial command, but no attempt has been made to introduce this practice in the northern cities, possibly on account of the inability of any ordinary staff to cope with the numerous applicants who might be expected to attend. There are but few Chinese officials in the district who are known to be smokers, and even these are being gradually replaced by new men; some of the Shan sawbwas however will still openly invite a guest to recline and partake of the drug as the first and most evident call of hospitality.
Measures of Prevention.
The province has been well placarded with proclamations, and officials who have proved backward in enforcing the Viceroy's orders of prohibition have been punished, in several cases by the loss of their posts. Numerous deputies from Yunnan-fu have toured the country, reporting direct to the capital on all failures to abolish the crops, and generally acting as a stimulant to local activity. Officials have been held responsible for their people, citizens for their neighbours, and individuals for themselves, and there has been a pleutiful return of substantial offenders who have paid their way out of trouble and thus helped to compensate the district officials for their other losses in connection with the opium traffic. Military officials and troops have been stationed along the tribal belt to inaugurate the new era and their activity has been marked with varying success. In the course of a recent tour I passed one of these temporary camps in a secluded nook, and I was struck by the fact that it was pitched in the midst of acres of waving poppy flowers, tended, not by tribesmen, but by enterprising Chinese.
Conclusion.
In conclusion, I have the honour to report that my estimate of the production of opium in the western circuit of Yunnan during the season of 1909-10 was 5,000 piculs, a decrease of 31,000 piculs since the inauguration of the anti-opium campaign, and that the land under cultivation amounted to 27,000 acres. I am of opinion that the acreage under poppy in the purely Chinese zone was so small as to produce but an inappreciable proportion of the drug, and that the bulk could be traced to the mountainous districts of the Shan and tribal country. It is possible that the Chinese will be able to effect a slight decrease in the above figures if the present vigilance continues, but they will probably recognise that it is neither expedient nor safe to effect an entire cessation of production among the restless frontier tribes, to whom the drug is necessary as a safeguard against the virulent malaria of their country, and as the only crop which will provide them with the simple necessaries of a life which has already reached the margin of discomfort and poverty. In the purely Chinese zone the consumption of the drug has fallen in the last two years from its pinnacle of high commerce and open hospitality to the standard of illicit contracts, of smugglers' paths, and back-door conspiracy. Large numbers still use the opium-pipe, and all abandon it with regret: but if the present relations between the price of the drug and the wages of labour are accentuated or even maintained, it is unlikely that the Yunnanese will be generally addicted to the opium habit after a period of five years.
The measures of prohibition have been enforced in this district under conditions which have presented every possible difficulty, both geographical, agricultural, and political, and it is evidence of the activity and earnestness of the officials that they have had the courage and the power to enforce the orders from the Throne. It is still early, however, to estimate the ultimate results which may be expected from the sudden abolition of this wide-spread and lucrative crop. The province presents an unhappy combination of poverty and ambition; it would be first in the anti-opium movement and at the same tinie a leader in the new spirit which is spreading through the Empire; at every city of importance a sturdy and well-equipped fighting force is springing into existence, and the men are taught to expect their pay at a high standard and at regular intervals, which will tax the provincial finances to the utmost, for under present conditions Yiinnan is unable even to pay for its own administration. At such a moment, when they might well have striven to husband their resources and to readjust their economic position on sounder lines, the authorities at the capital have
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suddenly committed the province to a whirlwind policy of opium extermination and of consequent agricultural depression, the results of which are not yet realised by the majority of the officials, and are but dimly imagined by, the masses of the people. In the meanwhile the district officials and the tribal chiefs, robbed of a fruitful and steady source of revenue, are casting about for some new spring of wealth, and their only remedy lies in some fresh appeal to the already over-burdened farmers. To many of them the seriousness of the situation is apparent, and it can only be hoped that the next few years will bring plentiful harvests, and that the pay of the troops will not be allowed to fall into arrears, The soldiers and farmers have already shown an inclination to join forces in several of the local opium riots, and in this country of difficult communications such a combination offers a serious problem to the responsible officials. The prohibition measures have been successful beyond anticipation but unpopular beyond measure, and the first sign of relaxation in the Viceroy's attitude towards the opium question would assuredly be the signal for the poppy to spring up throughout the miles of territory now lying fallow for want of capital and knowledge and suitable crops. With a steady conviction that such a day must come, and that the measures of prohibition must die a natural death, the traders and capitalists are hoarding up their stocks in the full confidence that their foresight will reap a rich
ARCHIBALD ROSE.
reward.
Tengyueh, June 9, 1910.
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