CO129-416 - Public Offices - 1914 — Page 99

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

OPIUM.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[2316]

6406

REC

19

No.

[January 17.]

SECTION 2.

Sir,

India Office to Foreign Office. (Received January 17.)

India Office, January 16, 1914.

I AM directed by the Secretary of State for India in Council to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 31st December, 1913, and to inform

you that a copy of it, with its enclosure, will be forwarded to the Government of India with a request for an expression of their views.

2. I am to take this opportunity of forwarding, for the information of Sir Edward Grey, a copy of the telegraphic correspondence on the subject of the amount of the non-China demand for Indian opium, and to explain that the Viceroy's telegram of the 12th June, 1913, arose out of representations made by the Government of the Straits Settlements, with the support of the Colonial Office, that the reduced amount of 9,000 chests was insufficient to meet the legitimate demands of the Straits Settlements and Hong Kong together with the other non-China markets.

3. I am also to refer to the correspondence, ending with Sir J. Jordan's despatch No. 371, of the 14th September, 1912 (forwarded by the Foreign Office on the 11th October, 1912), in which the effect of the Indian Government's sales of uncerti- ficated opium on the smuggling of opium into China was discussed.

4. Lord Crewe would suggest that Sir J. Jordan should be asked to furnish any information in his possession regarding the extent to which uncertificated opium is smuggled into China, and the routes which it is believed to follow.

Enclosure 1 in No. 1,

I have, &c.

TW. HOLDERNESS.

Government of India to the Marquess of Crewe,

Simla, June 12, 1913.

(Telegraphic.)

YOUR telegram dated the 30th April. Uncertified opium. We have had careful confidential enquiries made at Bombay and Calcutta regarding existence of alleged corner. At Bombay where chief dealers in certified opium have their headquarters nothing definite is known of any such movement on their part. At Calcutta enquiries among banks and traders have failed to elicit confirmation of Government of the Straits Settlements assertion that dealers in certified opium have cornered uncertified market. Following facts point definitely against existence of such a corner. Firstly, number of uncertified chests sold by us in current year up to the 15th May has been 4,975, while number shipped in the same period has been 5,851, and customs official(s) report that the quantities and destinations of these shipments show no striking variations from last year; secondly, number of sold chests uncertified opium lying uncleared at Calcutta is now only 2,563 as against 4,838 in August last; thirdly, three chief dealers in certified opium are Messrs. David Sassoon and Co., Messrs. E. D. Sassoon and Co., and Hardatrai, and out of the total 4,975 chests purchased from us these firms have purchased only 280, 30, and 35 chests respectively, remainder having been purchased by well-known dealers in uncertified opium trading with Singapore, Hong Kong and Bangkok. In any case we could not without breach of faith to the trade and discredit to ourselves enhance the limit already announced with fullest publicity for 1913, either directly by a revised notification or indirectly by supplementary sales direct to Government of the Straits Settlements.

[2032 r-2]

96