[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government. 1339
со
OPIUM.
CONFIDENTIAL,
[January 5.]
20356
SECTION 1.
FREC
[3035]
Sir,
No. 1.REG 25.APR 18)
War Trade Department to Foreign Office.—(Received January 5.)
4, ('entral Buildings, Westminster, January 4, 1918. WITH further reference to your letter of the 24th September last, on the subject of the restriction of exports of morphia aul cocaine to Japan, I an instructed by the Director of the War Trade Department to transmit for Mr. Balfour's information the enclosed copy of a letter which has been received in this Departinent from Messrs. Macpherson and Co. bearing on this subject.
From this letter it would appear that, if the control of shipments of opium and morphia and other opium alkaloids to Japan is to be at all effective, it is necessary that similar restrictions to those at present in force with respect to exports of opium alkaloids from the United Kingdom to Japan, should also be imposed on shipments from the United States of America to that country.
Mr. Balfour may consider it desirable, therefore, to suggest to Sir C. Spring-Rice that this matter might be brought to the notice of the War Trade Board with a view to steps being taken by that Board to provide against the re-export to Japan of consignments of opium alkaloids received from the United Kingdom.
I have, &c.
Enclosure in No. 1..
A. F. KING.
Dear Sir,
Messrs. Macpherson and Co. to War Trade Department.
5, East India Avenue, London, December 19, 1917. WE enclose herewith application for 8,400 oz, morphia we have on order with the manufacturers.
Should we be unable to secure a licence, our friends in Japan advise us that they will cancel the order with us and place it with American merchants instead of ourselves, who will buy from our manufacturers!
We therefore beg your careful consideration of this application, so that the business may be placed through British merchants rather than American.
Yours obediently, (Per A. J. Macpherson and Co.),
THOS. H. SWAIN.
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