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if such opium is found in his possession, for there is no provision for proper authority being given to him to keep possession of it, and it would not be in a store as defined by the Ordinance.

Section 16 provides that Ordinance No. 280 should be repealed so far as it applies to opium as defined by this Ordinance. That means that it does not include "pre- pared opium" (see end of Section 2), and so the right to sell prepared opium given by Nos. 280 and 109 (see Schedule A, Part 2) is not taken away. It appears that opium can be prepared here (see Professor Carmody's statement in (15) of these papers), and if a druggist "prepared" opium and sold it, it would appear that he can do so with impunity.

Subject to the above, in my opinion, His Excellency the Governor may properly assent to this Ordinance, which is sufficient for its purpose, and I humbly conceive that there is no reason why His Majesty the King should be advised to disallow it.

H. C. GOLLAN,

December 20th, 1912.

Attorney-General.

I have no other objection to raise to the Ordinance. If it is important to have the Ordinance passed before 31st December, His Excellency might assent, and the Secretary of State might be informed that an amending Ordinance will be introduced when the Legislature next meets.

H. C. G.

40467

SIR,

105

No. 145.

COLONIAL OFFICE to FOREIGN OFFICE.

Downing Street, 25 January, 1913. WITH reference to the letter from this Department of the 10th ultimo,* I am directed by Mr. Secretary Harcourt to transmit to you, to be laid before Secretary Sir E. Grey, a copy of a despatch from the High Commissioner for South Africa, from which it appears that the Administrators of Southern and Northern Rhodesia do not consider that the International Opium Convention should be made applicable to those territories. In these circumstances, and especially in view of the fact that the existing legislation seems adequate, Mr. Harcourt considers that it is unnecessary also that the Convention should be signed on behalf of the native territories of Basutoland, Bechuanaland Protectorate, and Swaziland.

2. I am to enclose, for communication to the Netherlands Government, two despatchest from the High Commissioner, forwarding copies of the laws and regu- lations with statistical information as to the importation of opium into these

I am, &c..

HENRY LAMBERT,

countries.

for the Under-Secretary of State.

Enclosure 3 in No. 143.

MINUTE BY HONOURABLE COLLECTOR Of Customs.

HONOURABLE Colonial Secretary,

I HAVE been interviewed by the importers and dealers in opium, who informed me that they have cancelled all orders for opium, but, as they have on hand in the Government Bond and on the way about 1,000 lbs., representing in value some £1,250 sterling, asked that they should be allowed a reasonable time to dispose of their stock before the Ordinance be brought into operation.

The monthly delivery of opium for home consumption amounts to an average of 160 lbs., which would mean that, if their request is granted, the Ordinance could not be brought into operation until the 1st of July next.

As the importers would have a moral claim for compensation if the Ordinance, of which little or nothing was known at the date it was passed, was enforced at once, I strongly recommend that it be not brought into operation until that date.

December 23rd, 1912.

41417

No. 144.

CEYLON.

40467

No. 146.

SOUTH AFRICA.

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE HIGH COMMISSIONER.

(No. 23.)

MY LORD,

Downing Street, 25 January, 1913.

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch, No. 711, of the 2nd December,t from which it appears that the Administrators of Southern and Northern Rhodesia do not consider that the International Opium Convention should be made applicable to those territories, and I have to inform you that, under the circumstances, I am informing the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs that I think that it is unnecessary that the Convention should be signed on behalf of the native territories of Basutoland, Bechuanaland Protectorate, and Swaziland.

I have, &c.,

H. B. WALCOTT,

Collector of Customs.

5822

No. 147.

L. HARCOURT.

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 885

22 PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

THE SECRETARY OF STATE to THE GOVERNOR. (Confidential.)

Downing Street, 23rd January, 1913.

SIR,

I HAVE the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your Confidential despatch of the 11th of December,* forwarding copies of a report by a Committee on the use of opium, morphia, and cocaine.

2. I have read the report with much interest, and I desire to express my appre- ciation of the care and thoroughness with which the Committee conducted their investigation.

approve

3. Ι

the recommendations, and I concur with you in thinking that if they are adopted the requirements of the Hague Opium Convention will be fully

met.

I have, &c.,

L. HARCOURT.

WESTERN PACIFIC.

THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE. (Received 18 February, 1913.)

(No. 5.)

SIR,

[Copy to Foreign Office, 25th March, 1913. – L.F.] [Answered by No. 150.]

Office of the High Commissioner, for the Western Pacific,

Suva, Fiji, 13th January, 1913.

WITH reference to my despatch, No. 319, of the 7th ultimo, § I have the honour to forward a letter from the Resident Commissioner of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands on the subject of the inclusion of his Protectorate in the International Opium Con- vention, which was signed at the Hague on the 23rd January, 1912.

• No. 142.

• No. 136.

† No. 1900

‡ Nos. 105 and 117.

§ 2990/12 13, not printed.