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height, when young Chinese returning from Europe or America were imbued with the Western ideas that opium smoking must be wrong: opinion had, however, reacted, and there was now a fairly prevalent view that opium smoking in strict moderation was not
deleterious.
Sir Delevingne said that it would hardly be accepted that the majority of the Chinese were determined to have their epium, such a proposition would certainly be rejected by the official representatives of the Chinese Government. He referred to the statement in the Report of the Malaya Committee that most of the Chinese smoking, learned the practice in the Colony.
·
Sir James Jamieson said he could not agree with what Er.
Fletcher had said. There would be no disorder if opium smoking
*
were prohibited in Hong Kong, and such a measure would be welcomed throughout China. It was not just to say that opium smoking is prevalent throughout China. The Province of Shansi, for example was free from it.
Mr. Fletcher agreed that he did not apprehend that suppres- sion would lead to grave disorder or that the Colony would get out of hand, and said that his Government were quite willing to prohibit opium smoking by legislation, but it must be recognised that until the sources of supply were out off such a measure.would be simply "eye-wash". Mr. Pountney, however, expressly dis- sociated himself, so far as Malaya is concerned, from the view of Sir James Jamieson and Mr. Fletcher that prohibition of opium smoking would not give rise to grave disorders, and he could not agree that a fiat of immediate legislative prohibition would be
accepted lying down.
Mr. Fletcher then stated that, if the opinion of the Hong
Kong Government that it is not possible, in existing circumstançeTM
to adopt any further effective restrictive measures in the Colony
is not accepted, he was prepared, on behalf of his Government, to
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