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towards the closing of opium divans in the said concessions and settlements, to take steps to that end, as soon as they may deem it possible, on the lines already adopted by several Governments.
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This object is attained by the latter part of article 17, which engages the con- tracting Powers having treaties with China to suppress smoking-shops in their leased territories and settlements in China, pari passu with like action in the Chinese territories adjoining, and to prohibit the smoking of opium in places of public amusement and houses of ill-fame.
The British Government, it may here be noted, have already taken steps to this end in Hong Kong and Wei-hai-Wei.
153. Resolution No. 8 of the Shanghai Commission was as follows :-----
"That the International Opium Commission recommends strongly that each delega- tion move its Government to enter into negotiations with the Chinese with a view to effective and prompt measures being taken in the various foreign concessions and settlements in China for the prohibition of the trade and manufacture of such anti-opium remedies as contain opium or its derivatives."
As above observed, the anti-opium remedies in question come within the scope of chapter III of the convention, as well as of articles 15 and 19, i.c., the object which the commission bad in view in desiring to prevent the growing up of any trade in such remedies in the settlements and concessions is thus attained.
154. Article 9 of the Shanghai resolutions ran as follows :----
That the International Opium Commission recommends that each delegation move its Government to apply its pharmacy laws to its subjects in the consular districts, concessions, and settlements in China.
Article 16 of the convention has met the desire here expressed in a somewhat different way.
It will be for the Chinese Government in the first instance to enact suitable pharmaceutical laws for its own subjects in regard to the drugs dealt with in chapter III of the convention, and to communicate these laws to the treaty Powers. The latter, in so far as they are parties to the convention, will then, if they consider these laws suitable, take the necessary steps for applying them to their owu nationals.
155. To sum up, the Shanghai Commission directed itself mainly to the subject of the opium traffic in the Far East, and was primarily concerned with rendering assistance to the opium suppression movement which the Chinese Government had lately initiated. The present convention goes far beyond this. It has dealt with morphine, cocaine, &c., as well as with opium; and in prescribing measures for confining the use of the two first-mentioned drugs, and the others referred to in chapter III, to legitimate medical purposes, for placing the production and distribution of raw opium under rigid control, and for restricting, with a view to eventual extinction, the trade in in prepared opium, it has, for the first time, laid down as a principle of international morality that the various countries concerned cannot stand alone in these measures. It is not sufficient for a particular State to take adequate measures for the protection of its own subjects; it is also essential that it should assist the efforts of other countries by preventing undesirable importation of drugs into their borders.
156. In order to give adequate effect to this principle, practical unanimity in regard to the measures possible and desirable was of course essential; and accordingly the British delegation and His Majesty's Government agreed reluctantly to less stringent measures than had at one time seemed possible in the matter of morphine, cocaine, &c., rather than run the risk of losing this portion of the convention altogether.
157. The acceptance of these measures in regard to morphine and cocaine stands to the credit of the British Government, which had already made the first important advance in regard to international co-operation in the matter of opium by the Anglo- Chinese agreements under which the exportation of opium from ludia to China will cease, having in the meantime undergone progressive diminution, by the year 1917, or at a previous date, if the Chinese Government similarly accelerate the disappearance of local production. This earnest of good-will, involving great pecuniary sacrifices on the part of the Indian Empire, materially helped us in urging on the conference the general principles which inspired the convention, since it showed the disinterested sincerity by which His Majesty's Government were actuated. As matters now stand, even if the difficulties to which we shall presently allude should impair or delay the full fruition of the labours of the conference, the fact will remain that it has marked an important
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step in international ethics, and has brought the matters which have been under discussion to such a position that international public opinion must eventually bring about, in one shape or another, the full results aimed at.
No Power which has participated in the conference, for example, can hereafter maintain that its obligatious cease with adequate protection of its own subjects from noxious drugs; it is also pledged to help its neighbours as far as may be practicable towards the same end.
158. The difficulties we have just referred to arise of course from the fact, already touched upon, that the number of Powers represented at the conference, being limited to twelve, they are not alone competent to carry out the full extent of international co-operation which the convention enjoins; and that it would be unreasonable to expect the participating Powers to sacrifice their own trade interests for the sake of international morality when there are many outside Powers on which no such obligation would rest, and which might merely profit by the altruism of the nations represented at the conference.
It is difficulties of this sort that have required the special and original character of the "effectuating" clauses in chapter VI of the convention, and dictated the provision that, after the signing of the convention, the first step should not be ratification by the signatory Powers, but an invitation addressed to the thirty-four Powers of Europe and America not represented at the conference, to sign the convention also and thus put themselves on the same footing as the original participating Powers. In the event of some of these outside Powers not having signed by the 31st December, 1912, it will be necessary, as the convention provides, to summon a fresh conference of the signatory Powers to consider how far the stipulations of the conference can nevertheless be ratified.
159. Then, again, there might be difficulties of a somewhat similar sort in regard to the carrying out of laws or their administrative equivalents to be enacted by the several Powers, since it would not be fair to expect one Power to embark on drastic measures which might be to the benefit of other Powers not prepared to go so far. Here, again, as provided by article 24, an additional conference may be necessary to deal with difficulties thus arising, or in respect of delays in ratifications which cannot be otherwise solved.
160. There is thus the possibility of considerable delay in carrying out the provisions of the convention-delay which might have been avoided had the United States Government addressed its invitation to a much larger number of Powers. Nevertheless, we can claim that the conference has done the best it could in the circumstances in which it was assembled; that it has provided machinery for shortening delays and difficulties; and that, as already stated, it has, at any rate, materially paved the way for a full and satisfactory co-operation of the chief countries of the world in grappling with the evils of opium, morphine, cocaine, and the other drugs mentioned in the convention. Nor, again, is there anything to prevent individual Powers which may be willing to carry out the full stipulations of the convention (or even to go further), without waiting for the co-operation of others, from taking such action,
161. We should like to state that, throughout the course of the conference, we received the most constant and loyal support from the French delegation, and in a special degree from M. Brenier, of the French Colonial Service. M. Brenier not only supported us ably and consistently throughout the conference, but he constantly gave us his valuable assistance outside its full sittings, especially in such matters as the proper rendering into diplomatic French of English ideas and phrases. M. Brenier was also of great service to the conference as a whole as chairman of the Drafting Committee, the important functions of which, especially in its later stages, have been dealt with in the report, and he rendered most willing assistance to other delegations, as well as to our own, in regard to the wording of resolutions or articles,
We hope that, if you think fit, the great value of M. Brenier's services to the conference as a whole, and to our own delegation in particular, may be communicated to the French Government.
The Russian and Netherlands delegations also gave us valuable support, especially in the matter of the American attempt to split up the convention, and M. Cremer, the leader of the Netherlands delegation, afforded the most kindly hospitality to ourselves and other delegates.
The German delegation, as will be seen from the report, were the most formidable antagonists with whom we had to contend; but, as will have been observed, we were able to settle our differences with them in a satisfactory manner by private colloquies. These were throughout carried on on the most friendly footing; and we
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