(2)
its supply. Although opium has from old times been produced in Japan, the amount was insufficient to meet the general demand; and accordingly it was decided that the deficiency should be met by devising a means of purchasing abroad, and that all opium, whether of home or foreign production, should be made over to the Government, which, after determining the composition needed for medicinal purposes would distribute it throughout the country, and when it had designated the druggists specially permitted to sell opium, cause all persons, Japanese or foreigners, to purchase from such druggists any opium required by medical prescriptions. This decision enabled Japanese and foreigners to obtain medicinal opium on the one hand, and on the other strictly prohibited its private importation. The Regulations for the Sale and Manufac- ture of Medicinal Opium, which were framed on these principles were issued in August, 1878, and brought into operation in the May following. Under these regulations the home-made article has been purchased by the Home Department and, together with the foreign article, examined for its quality by the same Depart- ment and thereafter sold to specially designated druggists through medicine superintendence offices and other offices under the jurisdiction of that Department. Further, although with a view to increasing the material for medicinal opium, the Government had, as above stated, encouraged the cultivation of the poppy and established the system of purchasing manufactured opium, the results were for a long time unpromising; the annual production of the country with the Osaka district as its center was only about two hundred pounds. Since the outbreak of the great European War in 1914, however, simultaneously with the general encourage- ment of medicine-manufacture and cultivation of medicinal plants, the rate of compensation with respect to poppy cultivation and cpium manufacture was raised, and lectures were given on the methods of cultivation and manufacture, with the result that the annual production gradually rose and stands now at about 8000 pounds.
(3)
The Regulations for the Sale and Manufacture of Opium of 1878 were replaced in 1897 by the Opium Law which is still in force; there is no difference between them with respect to the princi- pal points in the control of opium; thus, opium is a Government monopoly, private importation is prohibited, and all home-made opium is made over to the Government, and no person is permitted to sell, buy, transfer, own, or possess, any opium other than that sold by the Government. With regard to the control of opium in Japan, we may add that by strict control of opium by national prohibition at a time prior to the Restoration when the people were still ignorant of the nature of opium, we have fortunately been able to escape the instilment of opium poison from which some of the neighbouring states are suffering.
Thus, no evils whatever had for a long time risen in connection with the control of opium; but during the European War some unscrupulous persons plotted secret exportation of opium; and as it was feared that such practices would raise its market price and prove an obstacle to medical treatment, amendments were made in 1917 and 1919 to the Opium Law, whereby the control of opium-manufacturer was made stricter, the distribution of dealers in medicinal opium was adjusted, the sale, transfer, and exportation of opium were restricted, and offenders against these restrictions were subjected to corporal punishment. The principal points in the control under the presents Opium Law are given hereunder;
Opium manufacture: Any person who proposes to cultivate the poppy and manufacture opium must previously obtain the permission of the local governor and not later than a fixed day every year, report to him the locality and area of poppy cultivation; the crude opium manufactured must all be made over to the local governor, and the Hygienic Laboratory of the Home Department, after examination, grants compensation for such opium according to the quantity of morphine contained therein.
Government Sale of Medicinal Opium. The Hygienic
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