The Washington times., 1920-09-21
Women PICKET.
DRY CONGRESS
Display Placards at Pan-Ameri-
can Union Oenouncing Eng
lands Opium Traffic.

The American Women Pickets. led
by Misses Katherine o'BrennAn and
Leonora OReiliey, today began TO
picket the PAn-AmericAn Union build
ing. where the Fifteenth international
Congress Against Alcoholism 10 hold
ing its sessions. The pickets carry
pIscards denouncins the opium trade
Of England.
The picketing viii continue until
the end OF the congress, which will be
Sunday, II was announced. The pie
kets say they seek To call the Atten-
ton Of the delegates from all over
the world who are attending the con-
gress to the fact that the evil OF
opium Is greater than that OF alcohol.
and that IL II fostered by the British
government's monopoly OF the opium
trade.
Seven piacards were carried by the
picksts In each was printed attacks
on the English opium monopoly. Ths
placards read: Americana. do you
know that the opium traffic II q Brit
ish government monopoly"
England IL drugging the world
with opium. America 10 her worst
victim"
Americans. do you know that the
British government maintains 4 de-
partment of opium administration
Americans. can we anord TO join
hands with \ nation which Is trying
to dope US for trade reasons?"
Americans. do you realize that we
are exchanging the evils OF alcohol
for the greatest evil, opiumy'
Americans. do you know that Eng
land sells not only the opium. but also
tho license to sell II and then collects
az cess pronts on it?'
England profits, first. by growing
opium: second. by selling II At gov
crnment auctions: third. by licensing
the sale OF It.; fourth. by taxation
upon It,"
There are more than 2.OOO. 900 drus
addicts in this country" Miss O'Bren-
quarters Of the pickets in the Hotel
Lafayette, land the use of drugs will
never be stopped until something Is
done to induce the British govern
ment to stop auctioning II on to the
highest bidder. regardless Of the use
the buyer will make of 1t.
In this country. especially in the
larger cities. II Is horrifying to SEQ
the dope fends' in the police courts
wrecks upon the human tide. 1t 10
far more harmful to the human race
that opium be allowed to thrive than
liquor be manufactured or sold. be-
cause the liquor habit can be and Is
cured, but very few cases OF drug
addiction are entirely cured.
The British government does not
care where the opium goes: IL only
wants the profit. In India alone. the
English governments profits from
the sale OF opium and negligible
quantity Of liquor IL moro than $76.-
900. 900 q year. These nIures are
taken from the British Blue Book.
De- that hA
government lends money without In
terest only to farmers OF India. 10
that they may grow the poppy.
During the last year. England had
634,02O acres of land under poppy
cultivation and the opium extracted
from that acreage was enough to
poison the entire world. In one year
the English government sold STA
chests Of opium. A chest contains
14O pounds"
Miss OReilley, who has made q
study of conditions in New York City,
where she is affiliated with the labor
movement, says that to her mind the
worst abuse Of the opium trade 10
that in New York City peddlers OF
opium and its many different forms
sell the drug to children. Many high
school girls, she said, have been in
duced to take some sort of An opium
drug before an examination in order
to stimulate them. and then have
kept up the practice. i
Even the small children in the
streets can get opium or the other
drugs which are manufactured from
It," she said. The usual method Is
for the peddler to induce some child
to use it on a dare. After that II is
merely another customer for the
peddler.''
Both Miss O'Brennan and Miss
O'Reilley said that II has always been
the aim Of the British government to
drug the natives of the countries
which they control and in this manner
keep them in under subsection. This
was the case with India. Egypt, China
and Ireland. which. they said, the
British has kept down by fostering
whiskey drinking.