Drug Abuse

APPENDIX E

STATISTICS

FORMOSA

REPORT ON OPIUM, FIRST HALF OF 1900

CONTENTS

General statement of the results of the opium administration.

The registration of chronic opium eaters.

The deaths and total abstinences of chronic opium eaters.

The supply of opium paste and its consumption by the smokers.

The licensed opium business men.

The offenders against the opium law.

The medical treatment of chronic opium eaters and opium or morphine poisoning.

General state of affairs after the completion of the registration of chronic opium eaters.

The advice given to the sanitary officials in the different prefectures and provinces.

Statistics connected with opium.

GENERAL STATEMENT OP THE RESULTS OF THE OPIUM ADMINISTRATION

The first steps taken in the opium administration were: (i)To register chronic opium eaters with a view to the fixing of the idea that no one is allowed to eat opium unless licensed ; (2) the supplying by the government of all the opium paste demanded by the licensed eaters for medical purposes so as to prevent the use of improper paste. Earnest efforts have been made during this term to perfect the relative success already attained, so that the registration of all the eaters shall be practically finished by the end of this term, the registered eaters numbering 169,064 persons. But in the regions infested with native rabble or in the secluded mountainous localities inhabited by savages, or the remote islands with imperfect communications with the main island of Formosa, circumstances have necessitated incomplete results, much to our regret. With regard to the second of these two purposes, in spite of the strenuous efforts made to prevent clandestine importation, manufacture, or sale, the paste delivered by the government to the agencies is 275,123 pounds, valued at Yen 2,127,600.80. Compared with the last term, this is a decrease to the extent of 10,663.8 pounds in amount, and Yen 28,503.34 in value. While no special faults are to be found with the administration during this term, yet the fact that in spite of the increase of eaters registered by 15,52o persons the paste delivered by the government has so decreased that it seems to show that there is something wrong, perhaps inspection is not as thorough as desirable.
We give below some outline statements under more detailed heads

THE REGISTRATION OP CHRONIC OPIUM EATERS
Taihoku prefecture, Gilong, Hoko, and Taito provinces have finished the granting of the license tickets for the purchase and use of opium paste; Tainan finished it in September this year ; Taichu was to complete it by May this year, but has been unable to do so, owing to the disturbances caused by the mobs within the jurisdiction of Shotoroku district office.

Of these different localities, Taito and Hoko provinces were imperfect in the universality of granting the license tickets and the registration has been left unconcluded owing to the difficulties connected with the savages or with remote islands with imperfect communications. It is necessary to make plans for improvement on this point next term.

The cause for such marked variations in death proportions in the several prefectures and provinces is the neglect of the notification of deaths to the offices connected with the dead ; hence the serious abuse of the use of inyalid tickets—a sign of insufficient supervision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(3) The number of prohibitions or suspensions of the sale of opium is 14 persons this term, which is 2 persons more than the last term. The following is a table of the statistics locally classified :

 

 

 

 

 

OFFENDERS AGAINST THE OPIUM LAW.
Opium Criminals.
(I) The number of the offenders against the opium regulations prosecuted this term is 268, 27 more than the preceding term. A summary of the different localities seems to show that there still exists many cases of secret eating of opium, secret sale of unauthorized opium, and smuggling. As the opium administration would end in an interminable production of offenders unless a very strict inspection be held at its first stages, it is imperative that effectual steps should be taken toward that end. The following table shows the number of offenders and a comparison with that of the last term :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(2) The discovered cases, of opium smuggling and the value thereof, are as follows :

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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