CO129-349 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1908 [10-12] — Page 89

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allow the Government to examine his books at the end of 6 months, and to refund any part of the proposed com pensation (at the rate of $60,000 per mensem) which could be shown not to have been actually lost.

Para. 11.

❤

on

Sir F. Lugarú advises against this course the ground of expense,

and that no officer is available. (I should have thought that these difficulties were not insuperable).

(3) The "via media" is to close 52 divans out of a total of 190 and to pay the divan keepers either (a) $4,533 or (b) $4,706 as a capital sum, and the opium farmer either (a) $7,500 or (b) $7,000 per mensəmaccording as the list of Divans closed is that drawn up the Government or by the Farmer.

Para.13 of

despatch.

Para. 16.

Para. 14 (

X

It will be noticed that the divans which the Government proposed to suppress are all taken from Class C.-i.e., those which are making no money practically. The opium Farmer, on the other hand, has put down some in Classes A. and B. Mr. Hutchinson in his Minute of 7th September "cannot quite understand the ground on which the Opium Farmer has chosen his List".

Assuming that Sir F. Lugard's proposal for reducing the possible number of chests is not agreed I think that the least that can be done is to accept one of the two lists of opium divans. (on the whole the opium farmer's list seems preferable), and lay down that they must be closed

to

A

and the suggested compensa-

to,

tion to the divan keepers paid. The amount involved is

small

* 1%

M. H Bemant

N.B. The Mid contemplated on 25373/08

abolition of half of the divans

small and, though there is no question of vested intereste

(see Page 4 paragraph 10 of Mr. Hutchinson's Memorandum)

I think it would hardly be fair to refuse compensation

altogether.

As to the other divan keepers, they should have

notice that the question of licences will be reviewed

at the expiration of the present Opium Farm Contract in 1910. The question of the 10 "Unlicensed" Divan keepers cannot be pursued further.

As to the opium farmer the assumption on

which hisclaim is based is that the "Farm" will lose

(a) the value of 2/3rds of its Dross opium and (b) one half of its prepared opium dealings, with the Divans suppressed.

The difficulty, of course, will be to arrive

at any method of calculating the loss other than that

proposed; it is even more difficult to suggest any

effective opium restriction.measures: it may be sur-

mised that the suppression of the 52 opium divans will

not do much in this direction.

It has, however, occurred to me that compensation to the opium farmer for his lost divans, and an attempt

at restriction might be combined, by effecting an

increase in the price at which the various kinds of opium are sold, and by offering to compensate the farmer for loss incurred through decreased sales up to a limit of $20,000. As every chest of opium imported must be

declared

203077-

W. & S. Ltd.-16679-6000-10-07.

27

--1979-8000-4-08.