Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1925-02-07
U. S. WITHDRAWAL,
BELIEVED DEATH
BLOW OPIUM Farley

Geneva, Feb. 6.-(By A. Ply
Undermined by the withdrawal to-
day of the American delegation, the
international opium conference still
stands tonight, but in terribly
weakened condition.
The conference, however, will
continue and presumably many of
the delegations in attendance will
sign the convention. But the fear is
widespread that American with
drawal from the conference will
take the punch out of that body's
effort to conduct anti-narcotic war
fare.
stephen G. Porter. head of the
American delegation, who will go to
Paris tomorrow and sail from Cher
bourg for New York on the steamer
President Harding. February l.. to-
night sent a note to Herluf Zahl.
president of the conference. that he
is leaving Geneva because he is con-
vinced that the purposes for which
the conference was convOked cannot
be achieved; because there seems no
likelihood OF securing limitation of
the growth Of opium to medical and
scientific needs, and because the i'm
possibility of suppressing opium
smoking in the Far East only serves
to increase the difficulties of getting
opium production restricted.
Mr.. Porter was careful in his COM
munication not to hold the league in
any way responsible for the condi-
lions leading up to the American de-
cision to withdraw from the confer
ence. The correspondent of The AS
ISOLATED Press was informed tonight
that the American delegation is en-
tirely sincere In the feeling that the
league Of nations should in no wise
be called to account for the present
situation. International conditions.
especially in opium producing and
manufacturing countries, they UNDER
line as the true causes for 1t.
Viscount Cecil of Chelwood, head
of the British delegation, seemed al
most overcome when informed of the
American withdrawal, and when
word was spread through the con-
ference that NJ Zahl had received
Mr.. Porter's note of withdrawal,
Lord Cecil buried his head in his
hands. while others Of the delegates
looked stupefied.
Mr.. Porter this afternoon babe
farewell to Sir Eric prumraond. sec
retary-general of the league of ma
lions. Tonight with his associates
Mr. Porter attended a reception given
by Africo Mello, present Belgian am
bassador to the league of nations.
The withdrawal of the Americans
from the opium conference soday
caused especial chagrin because 1t
was the United States which.
/ pnncnrn1f f
ed the worlds aEti-opium battle,
having convoked the first conference
in Shanghai. The United States al
so played a leading role at The
Hague conference
The retirement of the Americans
was the last of a series Of sensa-
tional incidents which had charac-
terized the conference from the out
set. AS one of the delegates put it
tonight, some unhappy destiny seems
to have placed its fateful hand on
the negotiations ever since the time
when the originatcrs of the confer
ence agreed to hold two opium con-
ferences, instead of one, in Geneva.
The conference which preceded
the present conference, and which
was open TO delegates from all the
powers, failed to achieve any one of
it's three detectives. The first OBJ
jective was stopping over produc-
ton of opium in China, the second
was to furnish an estimate, for use
by the second conference, of how
much opium was needed for the
smoking temporarily allowed under
The Hague convention, and the third
was to devise means effectively to
suppress smoking.