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other Far Eastern ports by arrangement with the proper authorities, and also to China, by arrangement, no doubt, with the de facto Government at the place of entry. The opium does not come to Hongkong, and this Colony's only connection with the matter is the fact that Messrs. Nemazee have an office here, which they could doubtless move to Macao or Canton or elsewhere, if its existence in Hongkong exposed them to any penalty or inconvenience. In these circumstances, any legislative action in this Colony would be of no effect at all.
4.
I can only repeat what I have said above and on many previous occasions that this evil can only be tackled at the source i.e. in the country where the opium is produced. I submit that the most practical course would be to make the carriage of opium in British bottoms illegal, except under the condition that the bill of lading is countersigned by a British Authority at the port of shipment and that the opium is consigned to a British Authority at the port of destination. The authority at the port of shipment should separately notify the authority at the port of destination of all consignments. A regulation to this effect would stop the illegitimate traffic once for all as far as British ships are concerned, and, although the first result would.doubtless be merely to divert the traffic to foreign bottoms, His Majesty's Government would have set an example which the other Bowers belonging to the League of Nations could scarcely refuse to follow. Then, if the Government of the exporting country would by legislation impose heavy penalties on the shipper in the event of the opium not reaching the declared port of destination the wholesale illicit trading which has been rife of recent years, would be impossible.
5.
Sir Henry May in 1916 made a similar suggestion
to the Government of India, which however thet Government
could