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Reference
C.O.882/12
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| PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
C. 83014/31 [No. 101].
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No. 27.
HIS MAJESTY'S REPRESENTATIVE, WASHINGTON, to FOREIGN OFFICE.
(Copy received in Colonial Office 3rd October, 1931.)
(No. 1443.) MY LORD,
British Embassy, Washington, D.C., 16th September, 1931. As reported in his telegram No. 439 of 18th July, Sir R. Lindsay, acting on the instructions contained in Mr. Henderson's despatch No. 547 of 23rd April,* addressed a note to the United States Government on 7th May asking whether they were prepared to instruct the Government of the Philippines to co-operate with the British Colonial administrations concerned in the suppression of opium smuggling in the Far East on the lines indicated in the Report of the League of Nations Commission of Inquiry. Since the despatch of Sir R. Lindsay's telegram above mentioned I have twice reminded the State Department of His Excellency's inquiry. Eventually the Department requested me to depute a member of this Embassy to discuss the question verbally with Mr. Fuller, Assistant Chief of the Far Eastern Division, who has charge of matters connected with the drug traffic and was dealing with the question. I requested Mr. Torr, Second Secretary of this Embassy, to do this and he went to see Mr. Fuller on 11th September.
2. Mr. Fuller informed Mr. Torr that so far the State Department had been able to do nothing owing to the absence from Washington of General Parker, Director of the Bureau of Insular Affairs at the War Department, which administers the affairs of the Philippines. Moreover the head of the Philippines Customs Service, who was the official concerned with the suppression of smuggling in that Dependency, had been granted a long leave. These considerations had made the discussion of any new measures impossible for the present; but General Parker had been spending his leave When he did in the Philippines and would be returning to Washington in October. so the question would be taken up with him, though it was feared that there were many other important questions which would engage his prior attention.
3. Turning then to a general discussion of the opium smuggling problem as it affected the Philippines Mr. Fuller referred first to the very great difficulty of sup- pressing smuggling in those latitudes owing to the practical impossibility of effectively supervising the traffic of canoes among the numerous small islands of the Pacific. In the light of the extraordinary lack of success which has accompanied the strenuous efforts of this country to protect its own sea coasts from liquor smugglers, it is readily Comprehensible that the Administration would perhaps be justified in showing re- luctance to embark, in the circumstances described by Mr. Fuller, on an expensive similar experiment designed to prevent the smuggling of opium among the islands of the Far East. Further, Mr. Fuller pointed out that in the Philippines the Administra- tion enjoyed no revenue from an opium monopoly and he thought it unlikely that the Legislature of the islands would be willing to vote any considerable sum for an anti- opium smuggling service. The Filipinos themselves, he said, did not smoke opium, neither was it cultivated in the islands. Considerable quantities were, however, un- doubtedly smuggled in for consumption by the Chinese population; and this smuggled opium came in the main from Hamoy, though doubtless a proportion of it came via Hong Kong. In the circumstances, the most that Mr. Fuller seemed to contemplate was the possibility of some improvement or extension of the existing system whereby information on the subject of opium smuggling is exchanged between the competent officials in the Philippines, Hong Kong, &c. Mr. Fuller was careful to explain, how- ever, that what he was saying was in no sense a reply to Sir R Lindsay's note but merely a description of some factors in the situation which he felt it might be desir- able to give us in view of our apparent eagerness for an answer to our inquiry. No matter had been considered by such answer could be expected until the General Parker.
4. In these circumstances Mr. Torr ventured to observe that what your instruc- tions had seemed to him to suggest was the possible desirability of preliminary informal discussions between the administrators of the Dependencies concerned or, for instance, of the competent officials in the administrations of the Philippines, North
* No. 10.
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Borneo, Hong Kong, &c. Mr. Fuller replied that he thought that the best opportunity for such discussions would arise at the Conference of Nations having Dependencies in the Orient which is to meet at Bangkok in November and will discuss the opium smuggling problem. He said that it had not yet been definitely decided whether the Laited States should be represented at that Conference but that it was almost certain that they would send a representative. The decision would probably be taken in a few days and he promised to inform the Embassy of its tenor. On 15th September Mr. Fuller telephoned to say that the decision had been taken, that the United States would be represented and that Mr. Caldwell, who has so often participated in the Geneva discussions on the drug traffic, is to be their representative. Mr. Fuller again expressed the view that the forthcoming Conference would offer much the best oppor- tunity for the consideration and discussion of the points raised in Sir R. Lindsay's note. And it would, I think, be not illegitimate to conjecture that we shall now hear no more from the United States Government on this subject until after the Bangkok Conference has met.
I have, &c.,
C. 83035/31 [No. 44].
No. 28.
D. G. OSBORNE,
H.M. Minister.
BRITISH NORTH BORNEO COMPANY to COLONIAL OFFICE.
(Confidential.)
SIR,
17, St. Helen's Place, London, E.C.3, 6th November, 1931. I AM directed to acknowledge the receipt of your Confidential letter of the 22nd ultimo, regarding the instructions communicated to Sir Malcolm Delevingne for his guidance as Delegate of His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom at the International Opium Conference at Bangkok
2. The Court have noted with interest the instructions issued in connexion with recommendations Nos. 8, 11, 13, and 17 of the League of Nations' Opium Smoking Commission. Although this Company is making every effort to eradicate the evil of opium smoking in North Borneo and is meeting with considerable success, it could not see its way to accept these four recommendations on behalf of the State.
I am, &c.,
C. 83035/31 [No. 47].
No. 29.
W. O. PIDGEON,
Secretary.
NOTE ON A CONFERENCE HELD AT THE RESIDENCY, PENANG, ON
29TH OCTOBER, 1931.
(Copy received in Colonial Office 14th December, 1931.) ·
Present:-
HIS EXCELLENCY THE GOVERNOR.
HON. MR. A. CALDCOTT, Chief Secretary, Federated Malay States. HON. MR. P. T. ALLEN, Resident Councillor, Penang.
MR. G. E. CATOR, Superintendent, Government Monopolies, Straits
Settlements.
SIR M. DELEVINGNE, Home Office.
MR. D. W. TRATMAN, Hong Kong.
MR. J. M. MARTIN, Colonial Office.
THE Conference met to discuss opium policy in connexion with the forthcoming International Opium Conference at Bangkok.
* C. 83035/31 [No. 37]: not printed.
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