Among the suggestions made in the convention was the creation of a central board, whose task it would be to follow the course of international trade and the general acceptation of the export and import certificate system. The conference also drew up a protocol by which the signatory States, recognizing their obliga tions to establish such control over the production, distribution and exportation of raw opium as would put a stop to illicit traf fic, agreed to take within five years of the date of the coming into force of the protocol such measures as might be required to pre vent the smuggling of opium seriously interfering with the ef fective suppression of the use of prepared opium in those terri tories where such use is temporarily authorized. A final act, con taining further recommendations, was drawn up. Among these special mention may be made of a request to the council to con sider the possibility of sending a commission to various opium producing countries to study the difficulties connected with the limitation of the production of opium, and to advise as to what measures should be taken to make it possible to limit the pro duction of opium in those countries to the quantities required for medical and scientific purposes.
The result of this final act is shown in the League of Nations commission of enquiry sent to Persia to report on the possible substitution of crops for the existing opium crops. This commis sion, which consisted of one American, one Italian, and one French expert, presented its report to the Council of the League of Nations at its meeting in March 1927.
As a result of this report the representative of Persia made the following proposals on behalf of his Government. The programme which he undertook to submit to the Majliss, with recommenda tion for its enactment into law, is as follows:— I. The approval of the recommendation of reduction in area under poppy cultivation of io% per annum after three years on the plan proposed by the commission of enquiry. The annual reduction to con tinue for three years, after which time the Persian Government will reconsider its position, taking into account the effect the reduction has had on the welfare of the cultivator, the trade balance, the budget and the general economic condition of the country, and what action has been taken by other producing and manufacturing countries to curtail the production of the raw material and the manufacture and distribution of habit-forming drugs.
2. Acceptance of the opium export certificate system with an annual reduction beginning not later than the third year after the present, of o% of the quantity annually permitted to leave the country without production of import certificates (subject to reservations indicated elsewhere).
3. The exemption of land taxes for a period of five years in the case of areas diverted from the cultivation of the poppy to that of substitute crops.
4. Preference in the granting of agricultural loans to be given 'v the State bank of Persia, when established, to cultivators who divert part or all of their land under opium cultivation to that of substitute crops.
Since the conference of 1925 discussed the possibility of limi tation of the growth of the poppy and its export, India has also undertaken to reduce her export of opium o% a year until all export ceases. Thus a material advancement has been made in two out of the four great countries of production.
With regard to the stricter control of manufactured drugs, two interesting schemes are, at the present time, receiving detailed examination by the opium advisory committee. One, submitted by the American assessor on the committee, proposes the nation alization of all factories manufacturing narcotic drugs ; the other is a proposal made by the German member of the committee for the internationalization of manufacture by the formation of an international trust which should acquire a controlling interest in all the factories involved and with which the League of Nations itself should be closely associated.
A small expert body of the main committee was appointed to study the methods of drug control as enforced in the chief manu facturing countries, including the consideration of an interesting memorandum put forward by M. Cavazzoni, the Italian member of the committee on how such control might best be effected.
BIBLIoGRAPHY.—League of Nations, Annual Reports of Advisory Committee on Traffic in Opium (Geneva) ; Opium Conference Reports and other Papers (Geneva, 1925, etc.) ; W. W. Willoughby, Opium as an International Problem (Baltimore, 1925) ; John Palmer Gavit, Opium (1925) ; Raymond Leslie Buell, The International Opium Con ferences, "World Peace Foundation" Pamphlets (Boston, 1925) ; Sir F. Whyte, China and Foreign Powers (1926). (R. E. C.)