CRUSADE AGAINST OPIUM.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1754, 20 May 1913, Page 7

CRUSADE AGAINST OPIUM.

A TETiRIBLE TRAGEDY. : I POPPY-GROWERS INCINERATED. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyrieht Peking, May 18. A Shanghai newspaper reports that local gentry and farmers of Shen-Chow-Ting, Western Hunan, resenting the action of the troops in uprooting the poppy crops, assembled ill a temple to discuss the matter, whereupon the troops fired the building, and sixty-seven of those gathered, (heroin wero incinerated. • THE ANTI-OPIUM CAMPAIGN, ,< , I. Sections of Chinese have been fighting opium for ovist 100 years. An Imperial edict was issued against the drug in 1790. But the most important work has been done in recent • tiine9. > ' In September of 1906 the famous Imperial edict was issued ordering the prohibition of opium. It was regarded with scorn by foreign communities; but, as ono authority on the subject says, "the re--1 suilts achieved thus far have routed all scoffing and put to shame all scepticism." , The notional movement began in 1910 with the formation of the National AntiOpium Society. It was in October, 1910, that the Chinese, hearing that the British people had set apart October 23—which date was the 50th anniversary of the ratification of the Treaty of Tientsin—as a day for commemoration and prayer for the ending of tine opium trade, felt that they must do more themselves to stamp out the evil.

Under the leadership of Mr. Lin PingChang (the grandson of the famous Commissioner Lin, niio burned the opium in Canton in 1810 and brought about the socalled opium war), the National AntiOpium Society was organised' in Peking. President Yuan Shih Kai, soon after taking office in Peking, also issued strong proclamations calling for strict opium prohibition. In June, '912, the national laws against tho cultivation, sale, and smoking of opium were promulgated. Tho 'Anti-Opium Society in the various provinces becamei very active, many burnings of opium taking place; and almost every newspaper in the land .took a stand against opium.' The result of this national movement was the forming of tho National Opium Conference in Peking in 1913. The movement against the drug has now obtained such impetus that it is generally believed that the trade will never again be resumed. The stopping of tho import of Indian opium into China as a temporary measure will prevent an influx of this product in. the future, and commensurate with the reduction of the imported stocks tho native opium can, it is telt, bo reduced. The great question that confronts tho people of China is how to rid themselves of the stocks of Indian opium in warehouses in Shanghai, to say nothing of the nativte opium that is stored waiting sale in other parts of tho Hepublic. The Chinese Government feels that it cannot bo expected to bear responsibility for thfcj disposal of stocks of a drug which is not wanted in the country, although its financial embarrassment and the. several questions awaiting settlement with the Powers almost compelled it to take over the stocks nowi in tno country, and dispose of them at leisure and according to its own desires. Tho opponents of tho drastic 6teps that aro being taken to abolish the use of opium claim that China is deliberately breaking tho agreement by stopping the retail sale; but the feeling of China is that she has a perfect right under the treaty to suppress opium. This suppression would naturally swio-usly altect tho wholesale .trade, and thus tend to bring loss upon those w.lio laid in stocks in. the hope of getting rid of them before the traffic ultimately ceased. The National Opium Conference, besides passing some 20 resolutions which referred largely io the internal suppression of opium, made, as a final action, an apeal to the whole ciLivised world for co-operation in the effort to buy up as much of the opiu.ni as possiblo and.to burn it. This appeal will be sent broadcast about the world, and a continuation committee was apT pointed by the conference to sustain efforts to make the appeal known. Only a short w|iile ago nearly 15,000 dollars' worth of native opium was collected at Hankow and was burned in. public with much enthusiasm. A similar thing took place recently at Tientsin. Right through the country the feeling against opium is growing, and Iho Government is exhibiting a very strong hand in the matter. In many districts Government troops are out in the country locating poppy fields, ami rooting up the plants. 11l th;a province of Fukien, a veritable campaign was conducted against the villagers owning poppy fields, and the brigands and others who pined with tliein to resist Government interference and establish a kingdom of their own under a man claiming lo be a lineal descendant of the Ming Emperors. The opposition to authority was so strong that the authorities were compelled tn have gunboats pall-oiling the coast in 11".' viruiilv <-f ITsing-hwa, whilst a large ore? of troops was .'•ent out.