File No. 511. 4A1/918.
Ambassador Reid to
the Secretary of State.
American Embassy,
London, November 5,
1910.
No. 1463.]
Sir: Referring to my dispatch No. 1426 of the
19th of September last, relative to the proposed International Opium
Conference to be held at The Hague, and in further confirmation of my
telegram of to-day’s date, I have the honor to transmit herewith
duplicate copies of the note received from the foreign office, dated
November 3, in which inquiry is made whether steps had been taken to
obtain the necessary assurances from the other participating powers
regarding their willingness to restrict the manufacture, distribution,
and sale of morphia and cocaine, since the British Government made its
consent absolutely dependent on these assurances having been first
obtained from the Governments concerned.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure.]
The Minister for Foreign
Affairs to Ambassador Reid.
Foreign Office,
London, November 3,
1910.
Your Excellency: In the note which you were
so good as to address to me on the 4th ultimo with regard to the
proposed international opium conference to be held at The Hague,
your excellency stated that the Netherlands Government would
immediately be informed of His Majesty’s Government’s proposal that
before the meeting of the conference there shall have first been
made the necessary preliminary studies as to the trade conditions
and manufacture of morphine and cocaine in the interested countries
and their readiness to impose severe restrictions on such
manufacture and trade.
[Page 320]
In the note which I had the honor to address to your excellency on
the 17th September I stated that His Majesty’s Government would have
pleasure in taking part in an international conference for the
purpose of conventionalizing the resolution of the Shanghai
commission if satisfactory assurances could be given to them on
certain points and that in particular His Majesty’s Government
desired to be assured that the other participating powers were
willing that the conference should thoroughly and completely deal
with the question of restricting the manufacture, sale, and
distribution of morphine and with the allied question of
cocaine.
I have the honor, therefore, to inquire of your excellency whether
steps have been taken to obtain the assurances desired from the
other powers, as His Majesty’s Government felt compelled after
careful consideration to make their consent to take part in the
conference conditional upon these assurances being first obtained
from the Governments of the powers concerned.
(For Sir Edward Grey):
