ON THE HABITUAL USE OF OPIWItl 
this importance and extent takes, which lead to the considerations of 
Its affinity to drunkenness, its relations to crime and poverty, the 
subject of Insurance, and the continuation of the species, and lastly 
I have shewn its extent, that the habit consumes at least % 35,000 
per mensem and involves in its curse not less than 15,000 of the in¬ 
habitants of Singapore. 
The question now arises, ought Government to interfere to reme¬ 
dy this state of things ? And supposing that question is answered 
iu the affirmative, is Government capable by its interference of lessen¬ 
ing the evil? 
All interference on the part of the Governmeut for the suppres¬ 
sion of opium smoking must be attended with a loss to the revenue, 
for in the present state of things an increased revenue, a priori, sup¬ 
poses an increased quantity of opium consumed. At present two 
feelings I believe actuate the Government, one is that by raising the 
value of the Farm and so increasing the revenue, they are most pow¬ 
erfully aiding the suppression of opium smoking, for if the Farm was 
but a nominal thing, the price of opium would be so reduced, as to 
be more accessable, therefore more consumed. The other feeling is, 
that the farm is a most valuable means of increasing the revenue, 
and the Farmer pays most handsomely for his monopoly, it is there¬ 
fore expedient not to throw any obstacles in his way, or the rent may 
not be so productive. 
Our worthy Governor in 1844, shortly after he assumed the reins 
of Government, was particularly struck with the immense number 
of opium and spirit shops, and in his report to Bengal, he mention¬ 
ed that the number of Opium Shops formerly amounting to 72 
had been reduced by him to 45, which reduction, he congratulated the 
Government instead of being attended by any bad effects had actually 
increased the revenue. The opium Farmer from that day limited 
the number of sign boards on which was written in legible English 
characters, “ Licenced Opium Shop,” and in the place of each taken 
down he hung up the gunny mat, and inscribed in Chinese charac¬ 
ters the same tiling, being delighted that he could please those in 
power at the same time that he suffered nothing by it, and now 
