To-day a special correspondent in succinct form sets out the prevailing state of affairs in the drug traffic in China. Nothing new or startling was Fevealed. Yet it was shown that the Current belief in the virtues of stc-Jcessive measures of prohibition of the opium traffic is pathetically" ill-founded. The Government of China is admittedly in a very dificult position. Tt depends—as also. many of the provincial administra tions—on opium for revenue the loss of which might be disastrous. The [Opium Suppression Bureaux represent virtual Government monopolies and it might be better for the authorities to make their title correspondent more closely with their actual functions. (The development of an accepted policy lof Government control would eliminate operation of the Bureaux side by side Jwith an officially declared prohibition, When the country has to import rice to the detriment of its trade balance land cultivation of that staple food has to be superseded by poppies, obvious that the search for revenue has Jed to confusion. The whole problem requires handling on. different lines. The amount of revenue Jcoming from opium is far in excess of Government requirements Between the collection of the revenue and its by. the treasury there is an enormous leakage for which allowance has to be made. One jelear remedy is to overhaul the system 30. as to eliminate. these lealrages. It has been pointed out
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.