36. Another case of paramount importance and interest was the discovery on premises in Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po, of 36 jars of chloroform and 32 jars of Acetic Anhydride, which are used for making heroin. These jars arrived in the Colony from Osaka in 1935. Special vacuum pumps and filters on which there were traces of heroin were also found on the premises, and there were additional apparatus and gear in the premises, which had arrived from Tientsin and Shanghai respectively. There is no doubt that a deliberate attempt to manufacture heroin had been made at this address and, although the attempt was probably successful, it had to be abandoned because cheaper heroin could be bought from Tientsin. There was evidence from this case that most of the heroin smuggling was done by the crews of coastal steamers arriving from Tientsin.
37. Early this year it became obvious that pills were being manufactured on a large scale in the Colony, and special measures were adopted to combat the new menace. Instead of summary proceedings as heretofore in these cases, all prosecutions concerning factories were eventually taken before the Supreme Court for trial and sentence.
38. There was little change in the methods of manufacture, for factories were usually established in ordinary tenement houses, although occasionally more wary and enterprising manufacturers moved into residential districts, where their operations were usually free from prying eyes.
39. So successful were the methods adopted by the Department, that in many raids the factory was found in full swing and employees were as often as not engaged in rolling and cutting the heroin mixture. Occasionally factories were discovered, which specialized in pills with all the usual constituents except heroin.
40. Caffeine was invariably a constituent of the pills found, and it is an essential ingredient. Some idea therefore of the wide-spread popularity of the red pill may be gauged from the fact that at least 7,945 pounds of caffeine (that is, sufficient to make at least 180 million pills) were consumed in the local market during the year. It must be understood, however, that caffeine itself is not a Dangerous Drug, nor is its movement restricted or supervised in any way by this Department.
41. Another interesting feature of the factories was that very little money was ever found on the premises. Buyers of pills usually dealt with central agencies, who probably received their orders by telephone or messenger, and the pills were despatched afterwards either direct from the factory, or from a nearby depot. The carriers of pills were mostly country women, whose usual excuse was that they had just come down from the country and did not know they were doing wrong, and that the pills had been handed to them in the street by a man they did not know to deliver to a man in another street, whom they also did not know.
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36. Another case of paramount importance and interest was the discovery on premises in Fuk Wing Street, Sham Shui Po, of 36 jars of chloroform and 32 jars of Acetic Anhydride, which are used for making heroin. These jars arrived in the Colony from Osaka in 1935. Special vacuum pumps and filters on which there were traces of heroin were also found on the premises, and there were additional apparatus and gear in the premises, which had arrived from Tientsin and Shanghai respec- tively. There is no doubt that a deliberate attempt to manu- facture heroin had been made at this address and, although the attempt was probably successful, it had to be abandoned because cheaper heroin could be bought from Tientsin. There was evidence from this case that most of the heroin smuggling was done by the crews of coastal steamers arriving from Tientsin.
37. Early this year it became obvious that pills were being manufactured on a large scale in the Colony, and special mea- sures were adopted to combat the new menace. Instead of summary proceedings as heretofore in these cases, all prosecu- tions concerning factories were eventually taken before the Supreme Court for trial and sentence.
38. There was little change in the methods of manufac- ture, for factories were usually established in ordinary tenement houses, although occasionally more
more wary and enterprising manufacturers moved into residential districts, where their operations were usually free from prying eyes.
39. So successful were the methods adopted by the De- partment, that in many raids the factory was found in full swing and employees were as often as not engaged in rolling and cut- ting the heroin mixture. Occasionally factories were discovered, which specialized in pills with all the usual constituents except heroin.
40. Caffeine was invariably a constituent of the pills found, and it is an essential ingredient. Some idea therefore of the wide-spread popularity of the red pill may be gauged from the fact that at least 7,945 pounds of caffeine (that is, sufficient to make at least 180 millions pills) were consumed in the local market during the year. It must be understood, however, that caffeine itself is not a Dangerous Drug, nor is its movement restricted or supervised in any way by this Department.
41. Another interesting feature of the factories was that very little money was ever found on the premises. Buyers of pills usually dealt with central agencies, who probably received their orders by telephone or messenger, and the pills were despatched afterwards either direct from the factory, or from a nearby depot. The carriers of pills were mostly country women, whose usual excuse was that they had just come down. from the country and did not know they were doing wrong, and that the pills had been handed to them in the street by a man they did not know to deliver to a man in another street, whom they also did not know.
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