Tombstone epitaph., 1888-08-04
PRODUCT OF TIE POPPY.
Nearly $500, 900 Spent Yearly for Opium
 in New York.

Nearly oBO0, 900 Spent Yearly for Opium
 in New York.
 It was for the purpose of giving an &C., curate and interesting account of how 5000 Chinamen spend $46S, S49. 75 annu- ally just for the pleasure of 'hitting the pipe, "that the Chinese reporter made a thorough canvass of the various haunts of Chinatown.
 There are at present about twenty-five Chinese firms that deal in refined opium( both wholesale and retail. There are eleven private Chinese joints, where opium is sold at $2.25 per ounce. These joints do not now admit white smokers, on account of the frequent raids made upon them by the police, but the stores sell to both Chinese and whites, although the latter must be well known smokers Otherwise he has to suffer for the want of opium-which, according to all accounts, is even worse than to see ''snakes." Great tears would gush out of his eyes, big drops of precipitation constantly mOisten his brow, while his nostrils would act as If he owned a small sized fountain some where in his head. But the worst of all the ailments is an excruciating pain all over his backbone, as it he had been just run shAOuSh e AHC OAOohCo WiihSOi. VI such circumstances he would almost be willing to give half of his entire kingdom to be able to Chit the pipe"
 Six pills or pipes, about the size of green pea, would restore him to his naural condition of life, which would last him for about as many hours. A regular "flend" will consume about an ounce per day, which is $2.25.
 The sensation while smoking is indeed soothing. No matter how fatigued or op- pressed in mind, few whiffs of the pipe would put man in the best of social spirits. It has strange medicinal proper ties, and is said to cure all kinds of levers and ague, consumption and palpitation of the heart. Most Chinamen are driven to it through business reverses and other troubles, while not few contracted the habit through sociability, just as an American would do on their "take @ drink" with friend
 It takes just about the same length of time to get the opium habit as to get the drinking habit The latter destroys the mind, and makes a man irresponsible for his actions, while the former destroys the body but makes a keen thinker of the victim. It is estimated that there are something over 1000 Americans in the city of New York who are now using opium in the same manner and form as the Chinese Most of these are said to be well known and fashionable people, as indeed no other but people of means and of leisure could ever be able to contract such habit.
 The opium dealing firms sell from two to five cans per day, each can weighing about four ounces. Most of the wholesale rr1oro from, and citiaa in and around New York state, and only now and then the native American customers from up town come in to buy their supply. Say they only sell an average of three cans per day. At wholesale rates, which is $835 per can for China imported goods, but when retailed out by the fifty cents worth Ut time it would bring it up to about $10 to $11 per can. At $10, which is the lowest possible price per can, sixty-six cans amount to $66O per day, or $24O, 900 per year.
 There are eleven joints. The majority of these import their own opium, said to be direct from China, but the greater part of which comes from Victoria, B. O. One of these places, which is the best Chinese joint in town, sells at retail on Sundays alone from ten to twelve cans while the second best place sells from eight to ten cans on Sundays. On an average these joints dispose of five cans day. These places calculate to make from $2 to $3 on each can of Chinese imported opium, but they are able to make more when they mix the Victoria in with the pure. Thus 1t can easily be seen how nearly $1 ,00O, 900 changes hands for opium each year.
 According to Chinese San Francisco papers they paid over $500, 900 for custom house duties for the Chinese year just ended on opium alone.-WOng Chin Foo in New York World.