Evening star., 1923-05-02
WARNS OF INCREASE
IN DRUG ADDICTION
DR.. Kober Tells Anti-Narcotic
Conference of Dope and Al
C0h0Iic Evils.

III opening the national anti
narcotic conference, which started a
three-day session here this morning
! ;tt the New Willard Hotel, DR. George
{ ~ kober. dean of Georsetown
Medical School, permanent chairman
| of the conference. said that "alcohoI-
ism and drug addiction are on the in
crease in the United States DESPITE
prohibition and legislative restric-
tion,' and he urged education Of chill
dren and normal recreation to COM
| bat the evil influences that are under
mining the country
although America IS on 8 higher
intellectual plane than any other
country he said, forty times as
much drugs are consumed here per
capita than in any other of the white
nations"
To show that prohibition was not
haFlnS the hoped-for restriction Of
the use of liquor. Dr. Kober read sta
tistics giving the increase from about
zoo alcoholic cases treated at st.
Elizabeth's in 1920 to about 600 treat
ed in 1922.
Urge International Agreements.
All of those who spoke at the OPEN
ing session emphasized the fact that
sary to attack the drug menace at the
root, DR.. Wilfred f. Barton, former
president of the Washington Medical
Society. pointing to the fact that Il
thousand tons Of narcotics are pro-
duced in India and Asia yearly, where
only three and a half tons are re-
quired for Legitimate purposes. The
use of drugs in the United States has
trebled in the past two years, he
said, and now Americans are using
seventeen times as mucn rer capita
as the Chinese.
Eugene C. Brokmeyer of Washing
ton, representing the Retail Drug
gists' Association, urged that until
such time as international agree
ments could be made the mothers and
fathers of the country be made to
real fze that the solution Of the do
mestic drug problem was up to them
by developing intelligence and char
acter in children. which. he said, was
of more value than all the Legislative
protection possible. Along this line
DIR. James a. Hamilton, secretary, of
state of New York. said the greater
part of the hundreds of cases of ad-
diets handled in New York were of
boys and girls from sixteen to twell-
ty-tWo years old.
Welcoming Address.
The conference was welcomed to
Fowler. health officer. in behaIf Of
Commissioner Oystc', following the
invocation by Rev. Thomas C. Clark.
Rev. Jason H. Pierce welcomed the
convention in behalf of the churches
of Washington and DR.. William A.
Pearson of. Philadelphia spoke on the
narcotic problem from the medical
standpoint.
Reception This Evening.
The sessions will continue this aft
ernoon, with Samuel Gompers, presi-
dent of the A. F. of L.; Mrs. Giles
Scott Rafter, representing the Con-
gress of Mothers and Parent-Teach-
er Associations, and others scheduled
to speak. Following the meeting
there will he AN inspection of ST
Elizabeth's Hospital.
A reception will be held this even
ing at the New willard for Mrs.
Dorothy Davenport Reid, widow of
Wallace Reid, the film star, whose
recent death was due to drug ad-
diction. Mrs. Reid has come to wash
lngton to help in the work of sup
pressing the drug evil, to which mis-
sion she has announced the rest of
her life will be devoted. At the re-
ception there will be a private ex-
hibition of the film "The Greatest ,
Menace" which deals with the mar !
cotic problem.