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OBSERVATIONS ON SECRET CABLE of 9/1/28
from
38CHETARY OF STATE
to
TE DUVENIR 7 TONG KONG.
AINTRO POR
No 255
Earlin
ONIAL
OF
Mol. 53018/28 [25]
OFFICE
See
The theory gunling the cure of #pium addiots
37
ao trongly snunciated by ur,Clarke, Assistant Deputy Minister.
of Health for Canada, at a confarenze beld loat Pɛoember
at the Ibme Office, decortes tory marious consideration,
inco the general secartares of this theory ouls be likely
to gravely affect the position of hose "olonies which
atill maintain a Government Opium Monopoly.
In brief he stated that his Japartrent had become convinced
that the only siccissful method of curing the addict was
the famedinte and absolute deprivation of the drug in every
shape and form, and that this view was being pressed on the
attention of the whole Medical Profession in Canada. He
stated that an identical view was bela in New York by eminent
Vedical men with great experience in such cases, He had had
the privilege of assing the work of one New York Institution
which had dealt with such cases in large numbers, and learnt
that this institution had never had any ceaths due to the
deprivation of the drug; this experience coincided with
his own. The opium mudict being deprived of opium may at
first feal acute distress and think he was about to die, but
the symptoms soon passed, it was quite a fallacy he said
to hold that the cure of opium addiction must be a slow and
gracual processs, or that it was hupelusa to attempt it
in the case of inveterate addiction.
3. This theory is diamerically opposed to that hitherto
generally accepted, that, cure meant a very long course of
treatment or the gravual reduction of consumption over an
extended period, and that audicts of long standing or acvanced
Inp. to Delevingne
Copy to Monsey
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