The, population of the Philippine Tnlands is 7,572,199.
If there wore an attitude toward the we of opium among the Filipinos similar to that which prevails sag the Mohammedan Malays in the Strait Settlements or among the Buddhist Burmese, there would be less danger from a law, permissive touching the Chin-oon, bat prohibitive as touching the natives. In the cases quoted religious tenets, strongly believed in, diminish the force of temptation flowing from the example and influence of the Chinese. In the case of the Cbriatian Filipinos no religious sentiment regarding opium prevails of a sufficiently definite character to protect them with similar armour, while among the Moros the consumption of the drug has already reached considerable proportions (Vid. Table. of Imports of Opium to Sula Islands, p, j and Reports from Mindanao, p.
Tu the judgment of the Committee the immediate enforcement of " prohibitive unknown. They are supported in their position by many of those who advocate nas the only desirable legisla-ions than those ifa larger procentage of the population were addicted to the vice, the Committee would incline to the adoption, mutatis mutandis, of the Formosan system. But while. the Committee hi 10 utopian or oversanguine expectations ding the working of such a law as is herewith proposed, it is their firm belief that, in the circumstan progressive prohibition of a somewhat sterner type. than that which the Japanese have devised for Formosa, and fault is.as severe in the one case as in the other.
It is important to note that almost everywhere the Committee found. opium-smoking freely permitted, the use of the hypodermic syringe was assuming alarming proportions, This was tone of Bhanghai, Amoy, Singapore, and Burma. Singapore @ conservative estimate numbers the victims of this form of vice at 10,000. It -would spear that in a scourge like the subcutaneous uso of morphia the inevitable logic of permissive opium-smoking is'being reached. Atany rate the Committee-has no knowledge of sny considerable number of persons in community uncontaminated by other forms of the opium habit becoming slaves to the most revolting and fatal form of morphomania. If smoking isthe Joost injurious form of the vice, i to-.prepare for the worst form. No testimony is at band, however, determine whether those who have suocumbed to the morphia habit began as smokers. The inference from. the class of victims in Singapore chiefly.ricsha-coolies, who have a smokers.wherover
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.