The county record. [volume] (Kingstree, S.C.) 1885-1975, 1919-05-29
MANY DRUG USERS
IN UNITED STATES
TREASURY COMMITTEE SAYS
MORE THAN SCI, 100000 A
YEAR SPENT ON HABIT

The special narcotic commlttee,
appointed by former Secretary OF
the Treasury McAdoo to investigate
the drug traffic in the United States.
has completed its report and pre-
sented it to Secretary Of the Treas
ury Glass.
The report is Of most sensation
al character. 1t shows the United
States as the largest consumer Of
drugs in the world with more than
100000 addicts, and more than
SCI 100000 spent annually by drug
users to satisfy the habit. 1t also
shows a national organization Of
"dope peddlers" who car on a
lucrative trade in drugs Smuggled
from Canada, Mexico, and along
the Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
Although the peace conference
has already. taken action to protect
china from the spread Of the opium
habit, the reports shows the United
States to exceed China and to be
consuming 10 to 60 times as much
opium as is consumed by : other
countries. Our annual consumption
of opium is so extensive as to furn-
Iish SO grains of opium yearly to
every man, woman and child in the
country, as compared with two
grains annual per capita consump-
ton for instance, in Germany.
Ninety per cent Of the drugs con-
other than medical purposes and
opium comes in this category, &C
cord;ng to the report With regard
to our astounding consumption OF
opium, it says:
"When it is considered that the
greater portion of our citizens do
not take single dose of opium year
after year, it is manifest that this
enormous per capita consumption
is the result Of its use for the salts
faction of addicts."
Seventy-fve per cent of the CO.
caine imported in this country is US
ed for illicit purposes and the same
is true regarding ,heroin, morphine
and other drugs.
The traffic is increasing by leaps
and bounds. Practically all Of the
larger cities report increases and
one estimate Of the nations number
Of addicts included in the report is
100000 paasons~.s The committees
,6gu.as Of 600, 900 rs thereby shown
to be conservative One-quarter Of
these 100000 drug users are en-
ployed. In this respect alone the
traffic caused the country an annua!
loss in wages Of more than $780,
100000.
It is estimated that 237,655 per-
sons are today receiving treatment
in an effort to loosen the deadly hold
that drugs have on them. The strides
the peril is taking, though, are
shown by the estimate that 1929
397 narcotic prescriptions We're fill
ed in the past year The annual coz
sumption of coca leaves, from which
cocaine is derived for example, to-
tails, 1,04S,250 pounds.
The committee, of which Repre-
sentative Henry T. Rainey, of HI
nois, is chairman, used all OF the re-
sources of the Government IN OBJ
tanning information.
Native born Americans lead IN the
consumption of drugs. The order OF
frequency of addiction is as follows:
American, Italian, Irish, English,
Russian, Jewish, French, negroes, or
Chinese, Mexican or Austrian, Ger
man or Canadian.
The larger cities reporting an IN
crease in consumption have popu-
lation total of above 100000 per-
sons. They include San Francisco,
Detroit, Kansas City, Elmira, New
York City, Utica, and Yonkers.