The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1888-11-01
THE
THURSDAY, NOV. 1, 1888.
OPIUM SMOKING.

ing are pretty generally conceded to
be practices which mankind would
be better without. Neither has |
been wanting in defenders and adj
vocates; but still the practices are
regarded as vices that tend to de-
grade their victims although tobacco
smoking is practically looked upon
as a comparatively harmless vice.
The same class of people, however,
those of Western civilization, do not
consider opium smoking of the same
nature. 1t is voted the most PERM
cious in all the catalogue of vices,
whose indulgence is productive of
evil, inevitable evil, and nothing but
evil. The verdict has been unques-
tioningly accepted in the Occident.
1t is little startling when men,
whose professional standing entities
them TO attention, advance the con-
tention that the viciousness of the
vice of opium smoking is greatly
exaggerated, and that in the major
ity of cases it is "harmless though
foolish pastlme. This has recently
been done in the "Shanghai Mer-
cury' and the "Hongkong- Daily
Press The last named of these
journals cites high local medical
testimony in support of the position
that 'ordinarily the smoking of
opium is as harmless as the smok-
ing of tobacco" The Colonial Sur
geon of Hongkong, DIR. Ayres, is
quoted as saying "that opium smok-
ing, held forth as the Chinaman's
greatest vice, is certainly not to be
compared in it's evil effects, with
the European vice OF spirit drink
ing" DR.. Ayres, who has had an
excellent field of study among the
criminals admitted to the Hongkong
gaol, say S the paper from which we
are quoting, shows conclusively that
the habit does not interfere with the
digestive powers. One OF the men
who came under his observation was
seventy-eight years of age, had
smoked opium for thirty-five years,
and his consumption. was half-an'
ounce a day. There is no special
treatment for opium-smokers enter,
ing the gaol: they are simply de-
prived of the drug, just as tobacco
smoker is deprived of his tobacco
and DIR. Ayres says he does no
think the suffering attendant on th
deprivation is any greater in tn
case of the former than in that o
the latter, if indeed it is so great
He has prepared tables showing tn
weight of the opium-smoking prison
ers at the admission and during th
first four weeks of their confinement
and the result shows that no i'll
effects follow the sudden depriva
tion of the drug without treatment
AS DR.. Ayres says, a man {
seventy-eight who can digest tb
ordinary gaol diet and keep HI
weight must have his digestiv
powers in excellent order. "Mor'
over, it must be remembered th'
opium-smoking prisoners not undo
treatment have the ordinary rice an
water diet one day every weel
which would tend to decrease the
weight; Notwithstanding this, ho'
ever most of those weighing und'
hundred pounds remain of u
average weight. y IL
only reasonable TO expect that tho
who are above the average weight
admission should not add to tn
weight on gaol diet, which, thoue
sufficient and wholesome, cannot
said to be fattening. These tables,
continues DR.. Ayres, (which ha
been given for the last six or sew
years with my annual reports, pro
conclusiyely that the opium-smok
can discontinue the habit at on
without any treatment whatev
and without any detriment TO bin
self, and that it is idle to talk OF Il
suffering which the deprivation
opium entails.