CO129-258 - Governor Sir Robinson - 1893 [1-4] — Page 471

revenue, increased cost

cost of

collection; the demoralization of the people and the police;

and at no distant date the enforced extinction of the opium revenue.

18.

For the reasons

which I have had the

honour of stating I cannot too strongly impress Your Lordship the extreme importance of maintaining the opium farm in Hongkong. I have purposely refrained

from

470

from discussing the feasibility of suppressing the use

of opium in the Colony, for ~

even

if the Government had the moral right to attempt to do this, the most superficial

acquaintance with the local circumstances would suffice to demonstrate the futility of such an endeavour. Suppression

could not be

any

effected by

measure short of criminalising the whole of the Chinese population, and

constantly