The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-04-08
TIE OPIUM WOE IN ASIA.
Great Britain Said to be Responsible
for a Horrible Traffic.
From the NetD York Evangelist

Tor q HOrrtbl9 Treff
From the New York Evangelist.
1t is not Hudson Taylor Of the Chinese in
land mission alone that is authority for the
statement that more than 100000 900 of
China are, directly or indirectly, sufferers
from the use of opium" The writer OF the
article on opium in the last edition Of the
Encyclopaedia Britannica" states that the
number of those who useit TO be 100 600, 900
or 125, 900, 900, as the populstlon may be
800 O0O, 900 or 400.000,00J.
And now the British government in
india, TO increase its revenue, has author
lied the licensing of shops throughout India
and Burmah for the free sale of opium.
These licenses are issued in a very unusual
form. Those who take tho license come
under obligations 60 sell stipulated
amount or to pay forfeit. Thus the gov
eminent almost compels the holders of the
license to stimulate its subjects to consume
a deadly poison! The door is thrown wide
open for all the inhabitants of India &c take
that which destroys at once the body and the
soul.
The unrestricted sale of opium Is per-
mitted in Java with its 20 ,000,0 OF popu-
lation. 1t is also permitted IN the French
possessions in Southeastern Asia, with a
population OF 100000 or l0,010O00. The
vice is also carried by the Chinese immi-
grants into Siam and all the islands of the
Eastern Archipelago. II the population of
the various countries in ASIA in which the
free sale of opium is permitted are added
together, the aggregate number is more
than 600,OO0,0O0! In Europe and America
the sale is restricted to medicinal use, by
the directions Of physicians, and the walls
and boxes containing it, when thus given
| out by druggists, are carefully labeled
'Poisonp'
So the laws of China once prohibited the
| l.. 4 -. -
which was punished by death. So earnest
were the Chinese to prevent its introduce
ton into the country that the government
became involved 10 a costly war with Eng
land about it, at the close of which a treaty
was made in which England recognized
China's right to prohibit the introduction of
opium, but left it with China to seize the
vessels that struggled it in and confscate
the vessel and cargo! But as the SNUG
glers were Euglishmen and ships English
ships the Chinese were afraid to execute the
law, and 30 opium was brought in English
bottoms from India to China from 1S42 to
1860
After thus lighting the traffic for sixty
years the Chinese government, finding 1t
could not stop the smuggling Of opium into
the country by British vessels, finally gave
up the contest and submitted to legalize the
horrible traffic which it could not destroy.
And once admitting il into the country it
could not enforce the laws against its sale
and use and shops were opened in every
city and town and village in the empire.
The next step ives, as they could not keep
out the opium from India, to begin the
cultivation of the poppy in China itself.
Now, the opium made from the native
grown poppy is said to be three times as
much in quantity as that imported from
India.
In the districts where 1t is thus grown the
ox,ft b. yz nba
and its consumption has spread among men,
women, and children, so that some resident
missionaries in these districts say that
sixty and seventy out Of every 100 OF the
people are more or less opium eaters.
When went to China in 1874 it was sup
posed that 1000 900 used it. Before l left
| China estimated that the 100000 had
grown u 40000,0O0 while Hudson Taylor
now puts the number of those who use it di-
rectly or indirectly at 100 coo 900.
| 4Now, let us sum up the enormous extent
of this curse. The population OF India and
| BurInah, according 10 the cansus taken
last year, is 2S5, 600, 900; that Of China is
| 35O, 900, o00-some make it 400,000,O00. The
| island of Java counts its &c, 900 900, to
which the French possessions in South
eastern Asia add at least 10 100000 more.
| The Eastern Archipelago has, say, 5000, 900,
making altogether a total of $4,000. 900.
| The curse of Asia has been saddled upon
that continent by Christian Europe. For
this terrible blight cast upon the greatest of
! the four quarters Of the globe the British
| government chiefly responsible. A hun
| dred years agoi the East IndiaC ompany
| commenced to monopolize the production
| of opium for sale in China, and the govern
ment at home gave to the company the
protection Of the British flag. Since 1853
the British government has had monopoly
of the production and sale of opium
Great Britain is thus directly responsible
for the prevalence of the opium plague
among the 670000 600 people in Asia.