The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1884-05-10
The Deadly Opium.


~~Asses Va sA@s NAebs
The Rev. DR.. Henry NJ. Smith
delivered lecture last evening
before the Thornwell Society at
Werlein Hall. His theme was
IAN American opinion on the opi.
um question: He was introduced
by Col. j. d. Hill. A brief outline
of the lecture is as follows:
This subject, SAID the speaker,
is one of the Lying problems of
the times and 1t is destined before
long to be question of grave i'm.
portance to our own country. As
an introduction, DR.. Smith read
copious and pertinent extracts
from English papers and opinions
Of the lords and leading statesmen
of England, showing that they
would not favor Engiand's aban-
doning the traffic because it yield.
ed an annual revenue of nearly
$40, 100000. This, notwithstand-
ing the fact that the leading phi
lantbropists of that country, head.
ed by the earl of SALISBURY, i'm.
plore the government to suppress
that trade, and the Emperor of
China refuses to receive dollars
revenue from the trade In opium
because it is the price of vice and
misery. Doubtless the trade is
doomed. God will not allow the
unrighteous course of any nation
to 60 unpunishcd. He will hold
England accountable tor the great
crime she has Inflicted upon Chi.
ma and other nations who have
suffered from this accursed tarfilc.
In briefly reviewing the history
of the opium trade the learned or
ator stated that it began when the
East India Company obtained pos
session of India. The greed of
the members of this company is
well-known. At that time there
was no market for opium. But
England's gunboats went loaded
with cargoes of the deadly poison
into every navigable stream in
China, and forced its use upon
the heathen in order that this COM
pany might find sale for the prod.
uct Of their poppy fields, and to-
day that government has 100000
acres of land planted in poppies
in India. In order to force China
to use this drug, against the man
date Of the Emperor, mandarins
and people, the first opium war
was declared which resulted in
China being compelled TO pay En-
gland t21, 100000 for its cost, and
to open four more ports for its
sale. The second opium war re-
suited in an additional payment oi
s4,OOO,OOO and the opening Of five
more ports to England's nefarious
traffic.
Opium eating, said DR.. Smith
| is of an ancient date, but opium
smoking, which is more deadly IL
its effects, is q more recent habit
It has been attempted to glosi
, over its use and abuse as sinilal
to that of beer, wine and alcoholic
stimulants, but the combined tea
; mony of the first medical men O
Great Britain shows that the ct
fects are more terrible, and thai
the recovery of opium eaters is
matter Of human impossibility. a
r distinguished mandarin. writing
from China, says there is no VIC
known that can compare with OPP
: um eating for its pernicious CT
fects upon the body and mind
that Chinamen will sell clothing
property, wives and children t.
procure opium; that 1t destroy
all the mental, moral and physiea
powers, and that In the city 0
souchow, containing 100000 pee
pie, one-half are addicted to thi
terrible habit. .
The learned doctor then passe'
in review the course Of EngIan'
relative to the African slave trad
and showed that the s20,00o,0o
which she paid the West Indi
planters for their slaves. whic
we're freed, was obtained BY 70