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this question I cannot say that their efficiency is in any way affected except in the case of the lower class of Chinese. A Chinaman who is in a position financially to smoke opium does not stint himself of the necessaries of life. A poor coolie does; consequently his health suffers and therefore in many cases his efficiency is not as good as it would be had he not acquired the smoking habit. Then again too many of the ignorant poor fly to small doses of opium or morphine internally or to an injection of a solution of morphine. These are cheaper habits than smoking and unquestionably very serious evils arising from the smoking of opium. The baneful nature of these two habits i. e. the taking of opium or morphine internally and the injecting of morphine is not open to questions. If the Chinese could obtain the opium smoking extract at as reasonable a price as the British workman procures his weekly supply of tobacco there would be no such thing as regular morphine injections or internal doses by the mouth of opium or morphine. I am informed that the quantity of morphine imported into China is something enormous. It is unfortunate that statistics are not available. These evils arising from the use of opium may be attributed to the fact that the drug is overburdened for the purpose of revenue, not only in Hongkong

but also in China.

(8) How does the use or abuse of opium among any Asiatic races with which you are conversant compare with the use or abuse of alcohol among such races, in regard to the effect on consumers?

A. There is no abuse of alcohol among the Chinese. The majority take samshu (rice spirit) regularly at their principal daily meal.

(9) Is the habit of consuming opium condemned as degrading, or injurious by the general opinion of the Chinese, Malay or other Asiatic race? How would such races regard the opium habit as compared with the alcohol habit?

A. The Chinese do not regard the smoking of opium as degrading or injurious provided the smoker can afford to pay for it. I have frequently heard my servant object to a candidate for the post of house coolie on the ground that he was an opium smoker. He did not mean that he regarded the habit as bad but that it was undesirable to have a man about the house whose pay was obviously insufficient for such a luxury. Moreover an opium smoker might want his pipe when required by his master for house- hold duty. He might also find it necessary to steal articles from time to time in order to meet the drain on his purse. The latter consideration would weigh heavily in the mind of any good native head servant or boy.

The Chinese would regard the smoking of opium in a very favourable light when compared with the alcohol habit as displayed by the Europeans with whom they are brought in contact.

(10) Can and do opium consumers break themselves of the opium habit?

A. I have heard of cases of opium smokers breaking themselves of the habit in its early stages. If a reference is made to the Victoria Gaol statistics it will be seen that prisoners confirmed opium smokers, improve in health when the supply of opium is cut off. I am of opinion that only very strong minded men could break themselves of the smoking habit without the aid of internal doses of morphine.

(11) If the supply of Indian opium were to be cut off, what would be the effect on opium consumers, and on the Asiatic population of your neighbourhood? Would they supply themselves with opium from elsewhere? or would they take to alcohol or to some narcotic other than opium? or would they abstain altogether?

A. The cutting off of the supply of Indian opium would mean in some parts of China increased cultivation of the poppy and increased use of the native opium derived therefrom,

It is also highly probable that supplies would reach China from some new outside source. There is every reason to suppose that Smyrna or Constantinople opium, the finest opium in the world, could be produced in quantity sufficient to meet the demands of China. Persian opium finds its way to China now and could obviously be produced and imported thereto in increased quantity. In this connection it would be as well to bear in mind the position of the neighbouring Portuguese Colony of Macao in respect of the foreign trade with China.

It would, I feel sure, force the price of the drug to a fabulous figure and intensify the evils referred to in my answer to question No. 7. The Chinese are driven to the internal use of morphine now they will be all the more inclined to acquire this dreadful habit if owing to scarcity of the drug they are not able to buy opium extract for their pipes.

I am of opinion that the Chinese would not be likely to take to drink or to abstain from opium smoking altogether.

(13) Do people of European race contract the opium habit in any numbers? If not, why not? And what makes Asiatics more liable to contract the habit?

A. European do not contract the opium habit for the simple reason that the practice of opium smoking is an Asiatic and not a European custom, and Europeans naturally do not go abroad and adopt the customs and manners of the Asiatics with whom they are brought in contact.

(14) How are opium consumers led to use the drug? Do they usually or often take it in the first instance to allay physical pain? Is opium, within your knowledge, a prophylactic against fever, or rheumatism, or malaria? or is it so regarded commonly by any Asiatic race with which you are conversant?