PUBLIC PECORD OFFICE
·Reference :--
TTC.O.882/12
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
14012/83 [No. 26].
(No. 285.) SIR,
76
No. 51..
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.
THE GOVERNOR to THE SECRETARY OF STATE:
(Received 5th June, 1933.)
Government House, Singapore, 10th May, 1933. I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Straits Settlements despatch No. 485, dated the 30th November, 1932,* transmitting a copy of a letter from the Secretary-General of the League of Nations regarding Recommendation X of the Final Act of the Bangkok Conference and asking for my observations on the various points referred to in the letter.
2. I agree that research into the questions enumerated in Recommendation X is desirable but am advised that it would be difficult and protracted, and for its proper conduct would require staff and facilities additional to those of existing Government institutions.
3. As regards the facilities for such research this Government would gladly allow the utilization of the Government laboratories and of any useful documentary material in its possession. I understand that the Government laboratories are equipped with all the apparatus which would be likely to be required.. I regret, however, that no special facilities are available in Government hospitals. It might be possible to set aside a small number of beds for the special investigation of cases but it would be more satisfactory if investigations on the effect of opium were carried out in a hospital or clinic devoted solely to that purpose, where complete control of the patient would be possible.
4. Dr. Chen Su Lan, a member of the Standing Opium Advisory Committee, who has for many years taken a lively interest in anti-opium measures, proposes shortly to open a clinic for the treatment of opium addicts. Government is assisting by supplying drugs free of charge and by contributing to the cost on the basis of a dollar for each dollar subscribed by the public. It is possible that facilities for research will be available in this clinic.
5. Information as to the extent to which the questions referred to have already been investigated is contained in memoranda furnished by the Director of Medical and Health Servicest and the Government Analyst, copies of which form enclosures to this despatch. Reference is made in these memoranda to the following documents :-
(a) The Report and the Proceedings of the Commission appointed to inquire into the Opium question in the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States, copies of which were forwarded under cover of Sir John Anderson's despatch No. 424, dated the 12th November, 1908.
(b) The Report and Proceedings of the British Malaya Opium Committee, copies of which were forwarded under cover of Mr. E. S. Hose's Straits Settle- ments despatch No. 416 dated the 16th August, 1924.§
I have, &c.,
C. CLEMENTI,
Governor.
Enclosure 2 in No. 51.
MEMORANDUM.
For the purpose of this memorandum questions (1) and (2) of Recommenda- tion X of the Bangkok Conference may be taken together. According to the Report of the British Malaya Opium Committee (1924) there is considerable weight of evidence to show that the smoking of re-prepared opium dross is much more noxious than the smoking of pure prepared opium. (Proceedings of the Committee p. A.37, para- graph 1.)
4
* C. 92871/32 [No. 80]: not printed.
44633/08: not printed.
† Enclosure 1 in No. 46.
$ 43681/24: not printed.
77-
2. Reference to the Report of the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States Opium Commission 1908, Vol. III, Appendix XXIII, shows that from an analysis by Dent (Government Analyst, Straits Settlements) chandu smoke contains morphine equivalent to 0.1 per cent. of the weight of chandu smoked. Stanton and Eatra, of Kuala Lumpur, obtained an almost identical result.
3. In 1910 Brown (Government Analyst, Hong Kong) conducted experiments on the smoke from re-prepared chandu dross which (see paragraph 1 above) is considered to be more harmful than that from pure chandu and found it to contain 0.016 per cent. of morphine calculated on the original weight of re-prepared dross, i.e., about 4th of the quantity present in pure chandu smoke. He further examined the other consti- tuents of this smoke and compared them with those of tobacco smoke. The results are shown here (per 100 grams of re-prepared chandu or tobacco):
Carbon Monoxide. Morphine.
C.C.
Gram.
Nicotine. Ammonia.
Gram.
Pyridine.
Hydrocyanic Acid.
Gram.
Gram.
Gram.
Chandu dross
extract Tobacco
0
0.016
0.395
0.147
0.013
4124
1.16
0.36
0.15
0.004 to
0.010
From these figures it would appear that if the smoking of re-prepared chandu is actually more deleterious than the smoking of pure chandu this result is not due to the amount of morphine contained in the smoke:
poor
4. The fourth question of the recommendation deals with the provision of a ready test for the character of dross, i.e., whether it has already been re-smoked or is adulterated or is the product of other than Government chandu. This department has for some years conducted the examination of chandu dross purchased by smokers for this Government, and I have come to the conclusion that no easy test for the above purpose is possible. If a sample of dross is known not to be adulterated it is easy by little more than inspection methods to say whether it has been re-smoked or not, but if the dross is adulterated with any degree of skill these methods fail. The familiar balling test on which much reliance has been placed is, in my opinion, useless except as a negative one, i.e., if a sample of dross does not "ball quality, but if the dross does "ball" it may be adulterated. Further, it is general
it is of in the history of adulteration that unless a test is based upon the fundamental pro- perties of the substance to be examined it can be circumvented by the adulterator.
For these reasons this department has relied, whenever possible, on the deter- mination of the actual morphine as a criterion of the value of the dross and having regard to the price which Government pays for it, this is, in my opinion, the only safe method. If it is impossible to assay every packet of dross which is offered for sale it has been found that the knowledge that a reasonable proportion of the packets will be assayed has a very definite effect of the average quality. Two laboratory assistants, under supervision, can assay about 200 samples of dross weekly.
With regard to the question of a simple test for saying whether dross is the product of other than Government chandu it is obvious that this test must be a most jealously guarded secret; any simple test which became known to general testers of dross would speedily be broadcast over the East and the chief weapon against smuggling would become useless.
J. C. COWAP,
Government Analyst,
20th February, 1933.
14012/33 [No. 41].
(Confidential.)
SIE,
No. 52.
Straits Settlements.
HONG KONG.
THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR.
Downing Street, 8th August, 1933.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Confidential despatch
**
of the 20th April, 1933, regarding the transfer of the retail sale of monopoly opium
* No. 50.
239
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