CO129-394 - Governor Sir May & Public Offices - 1912 [12] — Page 480

[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.

469

0

OPIUM.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[December 13.]

2018

SECTION

REG 20 JAN 12

([49906]

(No. 1.) Sir,

No. 1.

Sir C. Clementi Smith to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received December 13.)

The Hague, December 7, 1911.

I HAVE the honour to report that the International Opium Conference met here as arranged on the 1st instant, and assembled in the Hall of Knights. I enclose herewith a complete list of the delegates, all of whom were present except those of Italy, who only arrived at The Hague on the 7th instant."

*

The chair was provisionally taken by M. van Swinderen, who welcomed the conference to The Hague in a speech, the text of which will be found in the procès- verbal of the first sitting. He was followed by M. Cremer, the first delegate of the Netherlands, who, speaking first in English and subsequently in French, proposed that Bishop Brent, the first United States delegate, should be elected chairman of the conference, adducing in support of his motion the ability and impartiality with which the bishop had discharged the duties of chairman at the Shanghai Commission of 1909, and the fact that the Government which he represented had taken a leading part in the proceedings which led to the assembly of the present conference. M. Cremer's proposal was supported by myself and by the German first delegate, and, being carried unanimously, the bishop took the chair.

The chairman then made an address to the conference, indicating its aims and the spirit in which we should approach our task. French was decided upon as the official language of the conference, but in deference to the wishes of the delegates of several countries who were not conversant with that language, it was provided that the use of others would be permissible. The conference then appointed its secretariat, and adjourned till Monday, the 4th instant.

At the second meeting, business began with the question of the rules by which the conference should govern its procedure, and the American delegation proposed a short code, based on that adopted by the Second Peace Conference. After the introduction of some modifications intended to bring the rules into closer conformity with the requirements of the present conference, they were adopted, and I have the honour to enclose a copy herewith.*

In the afternoon sitting we proceeded to discuss a motion by the first American delegate for the appointment of a committee, to consist of one delegate from each Power represented, to draw up a definite programme of the work to be submitted to the conference. This proposal, which Dr. Hamilton Wright only put forward after consultation with the British delegation, was passed unanimously, and the committee was forthwith appointed, Mr. Max Müller being designated to represent Great Britain. As required by the rules, a committee was appointed for making the necessary com munications to the press, and a drafting committee of five delegates to co-ordinate and give form to the resolutions to be adopted by the conference; to this latter Sir William Collins was elected.

The conference then adjourned until the programme committee should have been able to produce a programme on which the conference could usefully work. This committee has issued an interim report formulating items of discussion with regard to raw and prepared opium, of which copies are enclosed herewith.

At the same time, more informal meetings of technical experts have been taking place with a view to definitions of the terms which will be commonly used in discussion. Agreement has been reached with regard to the definitions of raw, prepared, and medicinal opium, and these, together with the two chapters of items for discussion mentioned in the preceding paragraph, will be reported to the full conference at its sitting of to-day.

I have the honour to enclose to you herewith, besides the papers already specifically mentioned, copies of the procès-verbal of the first two sittings of the conference, in which you

will find a fuller account of the proceedings than I have thought it necessary to give in this despatch.*

I bave, &c.

CECIL CLEMENTI SMITH,

* Not printed.

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