Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 11, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 January 1912 — Page 2

The FIGHT AGAINST the OPIUM EVIL

5 HE past few montbs have witChina that are fraught with W X« grave import for the people 3?- : - JrSsß of the most populous country // ** on the globe. At the same me tbere has been working t° a culmtoation another evolution in public affairs that holds almost as much signifi-ef>-SS3 cance for the inhabitants of ■ ■ the Orient as does the upheaval of the machinery of government. This late development Is a crusade to free the Chinese, and, incidentallly, other peoples of ) the world, from the bondage of the opium habit which has for so many years been a drag upon their Intellectual and- material progress. z We, as Americans, must feel an especial pride and Interest in this breaking of the grip of the deadliest drug habit because it has been brought about largely through the efforts of the United States. Or, in other words. Uncle Sam set the ball rolling. At

- ■ —■' ■. ■- first the movement simply had as its object the banishment of opium from China, . but gradually the scope of the anti-opium “missionary work” expanded until it embraced the whole world —every section of the globe where the use of opium has become a habit—and Anally within the past few months the fight against the evil has been expanded in scope until it embraces prohibitive or restrictive action not only against opium, but also against morphine, cocaine, and, In short, all habitforming drugs. -rThe fight against the opium evil, with Uncle Sam as the chief aggressor, has been going on steadily for some years past but it is only now on the eve of complete success that it hits come to attract attention from all classes of the community. From the time when. Chinese began to settle in the United States, bringing with them, many of them, their love of opium smoking It was realized that the evil was one the menace of which would sooner or later be brought home to our people—particularly those residing on the Pacific slope and in the western section of the country where the bulk of the Mongolians settled. However, it was only after Uncle Sam came into possession of the Philippines, following the Spanish-American war. that our publicmen and government officials were thoroughly . aroused to the necessity of grappling with the problem. In the Philippines our people found great numbers of Chinese who were confirmed opium smokers, and, worse yet, they were rapidly teaching the destructive habit to the natives of the islands. There was much agitation of the subject both in the Philippines and here in the United States and the upshot of the matter was that the congress of the United Spates passed laws prohibiting the importation of opium into the Philippines except for medicinal purposes. From that moment there was a marked Improvement of conditions. The example of Uncle Sam’s action and the complete success which attended it, awakened China to her own need and gave hope of a solution. The progressive men of China were deeply moved by the spectacle of another nation* (and one that had always been traditionally friendly to China) combating at the ▼ety doors of the Orient with an evil that was realized by all thinking men to be sap ping the life blood of a large share of Asia’s population. The result was a strong antiopium movement in China and out of this “ grew a direct appeal to then President Roosevelt from representatives of missionary societies in the Fax East and from commercial organizations and institutions in- the United States. It was the plea of these various interests that the United States government, considering its historical attitude in regard to the opium traffic in the Orient, should take theinitiative in assisting China to secure the prohibition of-that traffic. . This was In the year 1904, but it was a couple of years later that definite plans were made for an international concert of action In the matter. In that year Bishop Charles H. Brent of the Philippines, who was, naturIn a position to appreciate the havoc wrought by opium, wrote to President Roosevelt appealing to him “to promote some movement that would gather tn its embrace representatives from all the countries where the traffic In and the use of opium is a matter of moment.” Thereupon President Roosevelt had his secretary of state, Mr. EHhu Root, Open up correspondence with all the powers

having possessions in the Far East to ascertain if it would not be possible to form a distinguished international commission that would study the opium problem as it then appeared in the quarter of the globe where it. had proven the greatest menace, and would,

further, report the wisest measures for bettering the situation. ~ It required a year and a half of letter writing, back and forth, before the governments concerned could be induced to meet each other on a common basis.. In explanation of this reluctance It may be pointed out that a number of the countries, notably Great Britain, and her colonies, France, Holland and Siam, derive large revenues from the opium traffic, and in some instances opium production is a government monopoly. Should the traffic in opium be virtually abolished, as it is likely to be in time, these various powers stand to lose revenue to the enormous aggregate of one hundred million dollars a year. No wonder they hesitated. However, in the end the common cause of humanity triumphed and it was arranged that an international opium commission should be created. This commission, which took up its work at the city of Shanghai, China, early in the year 1909, discussed all phases of the moral, eco-

CALIFORNIA TREASURE STORY

The story of a wound received in the Civil war which sealed the hiding place of a fortune for more than half a century and of a strange trick of fate which cleared the hider’s. memory tn the evening of life was brought to Los Angeles by the hider’s son, J. K. Anderson of New Orleans, who is at the V,an Nuys en route to the old placer mining fields of California, says the Los Angeles Herald. Anderson’s father joined in the gold rush and was one of the miners of thdl’49 days. He located a claim in Placer county? near Auburn and Newcastle. Within a year he had snatched from the river bottoms a fortune. Then the call of the south for volunteers reached him. He burled the gold beneath the adobe blocks of] a tavern in the vicinity of his claim, strapped .all the precious substance he could carry'awut his body and hurried to join the Confederate army. Anderson says that his father was struck in an engagement with the Union troops by a bullet which tore open his scalp and robbed him of his memory for fifty years. During that time, the son says, the parent was like a child with 'all knowledge of the hiding place of the gold gone. Before he died, a year ago, his memory of the gold rush returned to him and he was living again in the past that preceded his p£rt in theconflict. It was during these last moments that the old man told his son and the mother where he had buried what he claimed was a fortune. The son is hurrying to unearth if possible the buried treasure. Anderson said: “My father said he burled the gold under a corner of an old adobe tavern patronized by the miners in the early days. This tavern was in Long valley at a point halfway, 1 have learned, between the pxeSent towns of Newcastle and Auburn. have learned through corre-

nomic, scientific and political aspects of the opium problem, not only as existing in the Far East but throughout the world. ~The outcome of the gathering was the unanimous adoption of a series of recommendations in which the delegates and experts assembled, strongly urged that their respective countries take action in three matters, namely an overhauling by each nation of its own regulations with reference to the opium traffic; the adoption of measures for the suppression of opium smoking, anti, finally, the enforcement of restrictions upon the manufacture and sale of morphine. The experts of the different nations having agreed upon the measures that ought to be taken to curb the evil, it was up to the UnitedStates, she having Inaugurated the project, to make the next move in the matter. This she did With no loss of time. Our officials wrote to the various powers suggesting that they get together and take action on the recommendations that, had come from Shang-

spondence that a family by the name of Scott occupies the tavern as a farmhouse and that the country around it is devoted to the raising of citrus fruits. ' .fj “No one has disturbed the original lines of the building. The adobe blocks are heavy. A have obtained permission from the owners to prosecute my search and will give them a

Trained Nurse Who Snores

“In all those months I vjas in the hospital somebody ought to have warned me, 1 think," said the trained nurse, according to the New York Times. “Of course I had it from the folks at home that I gnored a little, but I never ( took it seriously'until I went on my first case. I found then that it is a serious matter for a nurse to snore. “I took the' case from a nurse whose own health had broken down. The patient was nervous and excited over the contemplated change, "and that made my ordeal more severe; a brand new case of my own would have been much easier. Still, we got along fairly well together the first half of the night. Ha was a kindly man, and soon after midnight he insisted that I should try to* get some, sleep. I didn’t think I’d cateh a wink, but by and by I dozed off. It was a fatal sleep for me. The next morning the patient’s sister told me about the snoring. “ ’James could not rest at all,’ she said. T heard you In the next room.* "Before night I was looking for another job. Of course I did not have to give up nursing entirely, but the hard cases, where I am re-

hal. In other words, it was suggested that as a sequel to the earlier effort there should now be International co-operation for the placing of the production and traffic in opium under international law. The culmination of the long fight is now in sight. An international conference held recently at The Hague, the capital of the Netherlands, to arrange for measures that will put up the bars against upturn and other habit-forming drugs all over the world. Many of the men who attended the Shanghai conference were appointed by their respective governments to represent them at The Hague. The power and significance of the two gatherings was vastly different, however. At the Shanghai conference those in attendance could only advise and • recommend- At The Hague conference the delegates were empowered by their respective governments to agree upon definite measures. After prolonged seesions/ measures were decided upon which,, it is expected, will fully carry out and put into effect the objects of the conference. These measures will be reported to the various governments represented, to be followed by legislative action on the part of their law-making bodies putting into execution the regulations agreed upon. This is supposedly a mere matter of routine, as all the powers have given, their promise. Foremost of the regulations agreed upon ire those for uniform national laws and regulations to control the production, manufacture and distribution of opium and its derivatives. Almost as important will be the regulation by the universal postal union of the transmission of opium through the mails. Going yet further in the direction of complete control will be the restrictions that are to be placed upon the cultivation of the poppy, from which opium is derived, and limiting the number of ports through which the drug may be shipped by opium-producing countries. There was adopted also uniform marks of identification for packages containing opium in international transit. i_ The nations that are interested in this world-wide crusade and were represented at the conference include the United States, China, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, Persia, Portugal, Russia and Siam. Some of the other powers, notably Austria-Hungary, were not directly represented because they are not much affected by the opium evil, but they have given assurance that they will abide by the regulations which have been agreed upon by the conference. When the international conference was first proposed, China showed her intense interest by appointing a strong delej gation including such progressive men as Dr. Yen, who was educated in American, colleges and is in sympathy with American ideas and ideals.

share of my findings. Otherwise I would have to buy the property.” / * Anderson is a civil engineer. He was engaged by the government for some time in work on the Panama canal, but has left his employment to search for the treasure which he maintains his father has hidden in the old placer mining fields of California.

.qulred to keep awake ever? second, are open to me. All those soft snaps that give you a chance to sleep half the night are beyond the reach of the snoring nurse.”

Unintentional Truth.

“The latest agony,” said a spendthrift to his dissipated companion, “is the way I felt this morning. My wife asked me for a £lO note and I cut the chatter short by telling her that it could not be done, for the simple reason that I had only a matter of 5 bob or so in my pocket. “ ‘I knew you’d tell me that,’ she said, ‘and Jt’s And as I looked up in amazement she added, ’I looked in your pockets last night I’ve got the £lO note,* ’ J’Jhncy how I felt! But what could I do?” London Tit-Bits.

“Braggs is up in Maine hunting. He writes me that he’s shot thebiggest bear on record.” “Don’t doubt it It would have to be a monster for Braggs to hit it”—Boston Transcript

Plausible.

[ J fT ■ < V* Im

THRILLING FIGHT AT SHILOH As Both Sides Began Firing Panic* Stricken Bull and White Dog Seen Running Across Field. On Sunday morning, April. 6, 1862, we were called to arms and hurriedto the front at Shiloh. Over the brow of a low hill I could see a rebel flag slowly advancing, writes T. J. Maxwell of the California Soldiers’ Home in the National Tribune. Both sides began firing, the rebels all the time advancing. Between the lines I saw a panic-stricken bull and a White dog. After a regular hail storm of lead I. looked around, and not a man could be seen except the dead and wounded. I ran back to lower ground, and the shot and shell passed over me. My brother Same to me, and said we must hurry or the cavalry would capture us. We found the regiment, and were -taken to support a battery of one piece which was having a duel with a rebel gun. The swing and lead horses had been shot down; then a solid shot took both of the wheelers. An officer rode up near the gun, dismounted and. threw the rein around a sapling. He had no sooner done this when a shot passed through his horse. Had he been in the saddle both his legs would have been cut off. The next shot raked the gun. The boys cast off the prolong, dragged the piece a few rods to the left, and in about half an hour had silenced the rebel gun. Morning came, and we were taken to the edge of a meadow. In front from the top of a low wooded hill a battery was firing on us. Some of the solid shot would reaffK bur ranks. We crossed the meadow to attack, threw down the fence, and soon were a struggling mob, trying to climb through the thick brush and saplings. Those who got near the top saw the, infantry suddenly rise and aim, then dropped to earth as a volley passed over them. x The officer in command! saw that it would be a slaughter pen,| and quickly ordered a retreat. . We made a left wheel, and marchedl a short distance through open tinaber|< to level ground, and opened fire. Ij was standing a few paces from a largei tree. My gun barrel was hot, and II had but two or three cartridges left.; Facing us was a rebel brigade or divF slon. To the left it extended a quar-l ter of a mile. Off ,to my right the timber covered them. All this time musket balls were flying past me and throwing up dust at my feet. I think 10 or 15 men were firing at will, and I turned to see whom they were shooting at, but there was no one but my-t self in sight. l I went back to the rear, and soon came to a line of infantry firing. I passed through .the line. They said not a word to me nor I to them.| I- eame to-a pool xrf water; anti my reflection showed my face streaked with! powder, smoke and dust. My lips were*

"You Can't Go Through Here."

swollen from tearing off the end of the paper cartridge with my teeth. Presently I came to a cavalryman, who inquired: “Where are you going?” “I am hunting for my regiment.” Waving his saber over my head, ha said: “You can’t go through here.” With a quick step back I threw my musket at full cock, and said I would 1 go through. He lowered his saber, and touched his horse and moved out of my way. When I got to camp tents were pierced by balls, some were torn down and commissary and sutler goods were scattered over the ground. I threw down my musket, and carried water to the,, wounded—blue and gray alike.”

Mildly Tragic.

“Is Torker’s new play melodramatic?” "No. It isn’t very heartrending, although the hero while masquerading as a chauffeur does get a tire punctured in the second act”

A Possible Explanation.

Maude—l wonder why Jaek is ger? chicken hearted. Ethel—l can’t say. Perhaps be was an incubator baby.