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the work has now met with complete success. You request me to assist you by reporting (to the British Government) the strenuous efforts which we have made to get rid of the drug,
The whole world admires the loftiness of the meritorious desire to set in order the evil customs of an abuse to get rid of those who have wandered from the path and are on the black list," to change a fiery pit into a lotus field, to remove a dreadful poison and reform its victims. Your association has my warm sympathy and felicitations, and I have long ago reported to my Government as to the methods adopted in prohibiting opium. Now that I have received your letter I shall be happy to report from time to time as to the future progress of your work, in order to assist you in the good work which you have undertaken, to exhibit virtue, and to conform with your desire.
(Compliments.)
Enclosure 3 in No. 5.
Mr. Alston to Wai-chiao Pu,
MR. ALSTON has the honour to acknowledge the receipt of the memorandum, dated the 7th July, from the Wai-chiao Pu requesting him to consent to the prohibi- tion of the import of Indian opium into the provinces of Chekiang and Fukien.
In regard to Chekiang, Sir John Jordan wrote on the 29th May that the evidence in his possession would not justify him in placing the province on the prohibition list until he had made fuller and more detailed enquiries, and that His Majesty's Lega- tion would cominunicate again with the Wai-chiao Pu on the receipt of reports from His Majesty's consuls at Hangchow and Ningpo, and on the 17th June Mr. Alston repeated the sense of Sir John Jordan's memorandum.
Reports have now been received from His Majesty's consulates at Hangchow and Ningpo, and Mr. Alston is unable to accept the statement of the Wai-chiao Pu in their memorandum of the 7th June that Chekiang had absolutely cleared herself of native opium.
While regretting that be is unable to place Chekiang on the prohibition list forthwith, Mr. Alston is ready, in accordance with article 4 of the Opium Agreement of 1911, to arrange for a joint inspection of the conditions of opium cultivation and importation in that province next spring on the lines of the joint inspections carried out in Shantung, Anhui and Hunan this year.
In regard to Fukien, Mr. Alston would state that the consular reports referred to in his memorandum of the 10th June are not yet to hand. On their receipt Mr. Alston will again communicate with the Wai-chiao Pu on the subject of their request to have this province included in the list of provinces into which Indian opium shall not be conveyed.
Sir,
Peking, July 28, 1913.
Enclosure 4 in No. 5.
Acting Consul Pearson to Mr. Alston.
Ningpo, June 13, 1913.
IN reply to your despatch of the 29th May last, instructing me to furnish information on the attempts of the local Chinese authorities to suppress the cultiva- tion and import of native opium, I have the honour to report that, upon receipt of your circular letter to all British missionaries within my district calling for informa tion on the subject, the response was very meagre, and may be summarised as follows:--
Proclamations have been issued in numbers, but it would seem that in the out- lying districts opium has been under cultivation to some extent during the spring. although strenuous efforts towards suppression have been made by the local officials.
In the neighbourhood of Ningpo itself the suppression has been very thoroughly carried out, and I am informed by Dr. Score Browne, of the Church Missionary Society hospital here, that after enquiries among his patients and workers he is.
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unable to elicit any information as to the growth of any opium in the adjacent: country, and that although it is surmised that a certain quantity is smuggled into the province from Shanghai for local consumption, there is no definite information on this point.
Opium smokers are scarcely met, although Dr. Score Browne was requested in April to open an opium refuge at Leh-ko-lu for thirty patients. He added in his letter on the subject :-
-
On all sides I hear that opium smokers are being compelled to abandon their habits.
In a letter from Archdeacon W. S. Moule, D.D., he stated:-
I have just returned from Hangchow, where I distributed your circular letter to the members of our mission, and asked them to communicate direct with you. As regards Ningpo, I should say that opium growing is completely suppressed in the country round here. In the city of Tzuchi, which used to be full of opium shops, these have entirely disappeared. One hears of hospitals being opened in several places for smokers who are breaking off their habits.
On the other hand, one hears that a good deal of opium is smuggled in and smoked in secret. This is, I suppose, to be expected.
"There have been several stringent prohibitions against both the growing and smoking of opium posted at the city gates, but I have not secured copies.
should say that there can be little doubt of the sincerity of the provincial Government to suppress the practice."
As a comment on the above, I may mention that no actual seizure of smuggled opium has been made by the customs at Ningpo for several months.
I have personally questioned all of the provisional Chinese officials with whom I have come in contact, and have been assured, without exception, that opium smoking has been absolutely suppressed within the immediate neighbourhood of Ningpo itself. As to the outlying districts, the history of the attempt at suppression is as follows:-
Linghai-In December of last year an official was sent from Hangchow to supervise the suppression of cultivation. He found a large tract of country, acces- sible only by very difficult mountain routes, well planted with poppy, and, accom- panied by 100 troops from Hainen, forced the cultivators to root up the crop, but this was not accomplished until one of them, a literate, had been shot, and a riot had ensued, during which the soldiers were deprived of their guns. The gentry subse- quently became panic-stricken and apologised. The arms were returned, but they stated that they were powerless to prevent the cultivation by the farmers. deputy returned to Haimen. The commandant telegraphed to Hangchow for further troops, and with the Linghai magistrate and opium deputy proceeded to the spot with 200 soldiers, a demonstration which has proved effective.
The
Taiping At Taiping an example was made of ten of the leading literati who were known to be smokers. They were summoned to the yamên by the magistrate and thrown into prison, the doors of which were sealed. No beds were allowed them, and they were told that they were to stay until they had overcome their, craving. It is said that a fine of 2,000 dollars was inflicted on each. I have no further informa- tion as to their ultimate fate.
On the 24th May Mr. Bucknall wrote:-
LL
I have found some opium in flower on the hills of T'aiping, and picked about forty plants, which I showed to the official, but did not mention what I intended to do with it. He asked me where I picked it, and I told him.”
Haimen. The Haimen magistrate has been, active in the suppression of cultiva- tion, making personal excursions and causing all growing plants to be destroyed wherever found. Two hundred soldiers were sent into the mountains round Taichow to shoot all proprietors of land bearing poppy.
There is said to be no opium planted in the immediate neighbourhood of Haimen. Taiping.-The Taiping magistrate made a raid among the Taichow islands searching for opium, and, armed with a revolver, went through the streets locating
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