CO129-482 - Public Offices - 1923 — Page 486

16.

484

Dross

53. It is unfortunate that the system of retail de- rends to a large extent on the dross which now forms the only Frofit of the retailer. Dross is the ash left in oplum ires after prepared opium has been anoked. The per- centage of morphine is nearly as high in drose as in "re- pered orium (7 to 8 ), and this rest due may be smacked or eaten by those addicted to the habit. The est ing ☛ dross is, of course, more harmful then sndking since norrhine (the harmful alkeloid of ortum ) is taken into the system by that means..

54. The amount obtained la roughly 50 per cent of the opium smoked, and it has a market value of about two-thirds of the crice of opium. So that of every tamlung of opium smoked, at 5 ticals cer tamlung, the value of the ash re- maining is about 5 ticals, This ash is sold by retailers and constitutes their profit, as they are not alf oved a crofit on the sale of oclum itself. The custom of allo7– ing the retaller to make a rofit from this source has been in existence for a very long period, end e certain class of opium habitués has arisen, at least equal in number to smokers who are addicted to the hrbit ɗ gallowing dross, Oring to the harmful effects of this practice, at least two other countries have made an attempt to try and revent it viz.. British Helaya (Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States) and Java, but up to the cresent this Govern- ment has taken no steps in the mattor. For one thing, re- -rivation of dross would grobably drive the poorer class of opium hebitués, who are the dross esters, to crime in order to obtain money to buy the higher criced orium which would be their only alternative, Further it must be renam- bered that the consumction of dross 111 decline in direct proportion to the decrease in orium smoking, as without the letter no drogs can be croduced.

55.

With the advent of registration no person not addicted to either oriun or dross 7111 take to the habit, since it is the confirmed opium smoker of reduced cir cum- stances who is finally drivon to dross, Young men in the absence of strict control may take to smoking deliberately, or may be induced to do so rt first for amusement pleas ure, but no one 111 trke to allowing dross ithout al-

ready being an opium smoker since the taste is unplers- ant in the extreme, with no novel sonsrtions rttending its consumption. It follors that if registration successfully crevents no cursons taking to the 5-bit smoking it will also effectively trevent any incruese in the use of dross,

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