The independent-reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1909-1955, 1913-05-22
The Prevalence OF the Morphine and
COeain Habits

Examination Oh the laws WHICH con-
troll the sale of opium and cocain in
the several states show that there Is
most extraordinary lack Of uniform
ity In many states antinarcotic
laws are SO prehensiYe that were
an attempt made to enforce the law
literally it would result in the fine or
Imprisonment of practically all the re-
tail druggists. On the other hand.
there are some states in which the ex-
ceptions and provisos to the law are
so numerous as practically to nullify
all efforts to control the traffic in mar
cote drugs
Although in most of the states
there is some Legislation which aims
to abolish the evil, it is all of com
paratiYely recent date. and has not
kept pace with the increase in drug
addiction. Lack OF federal control
resulting in various conflicting state
laws, or more properly speaking in
giving rise to such a diversity of laws
that stringeney in one state can be
overcome by ordering by mail from
another state where the laws are less
stringent. is undoubtedly the chief
reason why our country in respect to
the prevalence OF morphine addiction
Since 1860, when the various forms
OF opium We're separately enumerated
in the tariff schedule. there has been
an increase of 351 per cent in the
importation and consumption of all
forms of opium, as against an increase
of 1873 per cent in the population. In
the United States during the last ten
years there has been an annual i'm
portation and consumption of opium
of over 100000 pounds Austria
Hungary, with a population of little
less than half that of ours consumes
annually less that LOO this amount
of opium. Germany with sixty mil
lion inhabitants consumes only about
1900 pounds annually, while in Italy
with thirty-three millions there is an
annual consumption of only about
5000 pounds. The appalling discre
pancy consists in the fact that the
most reliable authorities are agreed
imported into the United States would
amply suffice for the legitimate medi-
cal needs of our people. This coun-
try manufactures into morphine fully
| 800, 900 pounds of the annual importa-
ton, and it Is estimated that so per
cent of the morphine thus made is
used by victims of the habit.
When we consider cocain, the sit
/ uation is no less alarming. Roller
first introduced this drug to the medi-
cal profession in 1884. Thirteen years
! later was enacted the first legislation
! in the United States which strove to
prevent the indiscrlminate sale OF the
drug. In 1897 Illinois passed a law
which made it unlawful to give or sell
cocain or preparation containing CO.
cain in any form except on prescrip-
ton of a physician or dentist. The
! impractcability of all the legislation
since that time is evidenced by the
fact that although cocain is a drug
which is utterly useless except In the
( hands of the physician or dentist, and
should never be prescribed for con-
tinuous use under any circumstances
even by them there has nevertheless
been such a steady increase in its
use that it is now reliably estimated
that its illegitimate use alone ex-
ceeds 10000 ounces every year.
A consideration of the evils attend
ant on the use of morphine and CO.
cain alone, says The Journal of the
American Medical Association, should
tend to convince the most ardent ad-
vocate of states rights that legisla-
ton regulating the sale of all danger
Gus habit-forming narcotics should be
national in scope and absolutely uni
form throughout the country. In
matters which affect the health OF the
nation at large the laws should be
made by Congress, and their eXecI-
/ ton should be in the hands of federal
rather than state authorities.