“ \4 e ae see Hygienic Laboratory:

ivy Pear at Sa KE ECON OS VER ME FTE |

    

ss : Ce 20,1924.
MENORANDDY ‘70 THs SURGUON GENERAL: NS Risk 4Ary C / >\

In reference to the report of its President, Mr.Richmond P.
Hobson, to the Board of Directors of the International Educational |
Association, and to the letter dated August 11,1924, from Mr.Hobson

to Mr. Bascom &. Slemp, Secretary to the President, in which
references are made to opposition of Goverment of ficials to his
plans for educating the people of the country concerning the
narcotic menace, I have the honor to report as follows:

I met Mr. Hobson while he was in. Washington last spring and gave

. him some of my views as to the prevalence of addiction, the

effect of narcotics, the paychology of the addict, and related
subjects. I also explained to him how the rigid enforcement f,
of our laws had decreased addiction in the United States.
Shortly after this I received a request to appear before the
Senate Committee on Printing to testify as to the advisability
of printing fifty million copies of the document "The Peril of
Narcotic Drug Addiction", a waming. |

Mr. Hobson, knowing from my conversations with him that my.
testimony would be unfavorable to the view that there were
millions of addicts in this country and that the menace was
growing, tried to discredit my testimony before it was given

by telling the Committee, directly or by implication, that

I sympathized with the addict, was opposed to taking away
narcotics from him, and did not believe narcotics caused moral
deterioration. This was contrary to what I had said, and before
my direct teatimony began I told the Committee, in the presence
of Mr. Hobson, that he had misunderstood me and informed them
that I had explained to him the deteriorating effect of
narcotics and the benefits derived from restricting their use.

I also then opposed an amendment to the Harrison law, proposed
by one of Mr.Hobson's witnesses, which would take the teeth out
of the law by allowing doctors to prescribe indiscriminately for
addicts, without any idea of effecting a cure. Also, in the
Public Health Reports of May 25,1924, we have pointed out the
enormous benefits which have resulted from legally restricting
the use of narcotics, but, in the face of all this evidence to
the contrary, Mr.Hobson says “this opposition opposes interfering

with the addict getting his drug."

It ig not necessary for me to refer to the attitude of the
Nareotic Division except to point out the inconsistency

of the above statements by citing what the Narcotic Division is
doing. Last year, through its efforts, over 4,000 convictions
were secured snd more than 4,000 years of sentence were im-
posed on persons, chiefly addicts, who insisted on getting
narcetics in violation of law. If the attitude of the witness
introduced by Mr. Hobson and above referred to ever finds
expression in law this deterrent influence on addiction will be
removed because unserupulous physicians will then be able to
prescribe for addicts under the guise of administering treatment.

vhysicians who now give nareoti es to curable addicts, except in

 
ed

| Tho | ‘Surgeon General . =2- August 20,1924.

 eourse of honest effort to effec’ a cure, are sent te jail.
=e the attitude or the Narcotic Division, and [I Senmere
0 «

The document, off the publication and wholesale distribution
of which 1 disapprove, is not educational; no document can
be educational which ignores pertinent facts and contains
inaccuracies such as this document contains. I will not
refer to specific parts of the paper because the Hearings
have been printed and my testimony pointing out numerous |
glaring errors in it may be read, along with the objections
raised by the Narcotic vontrol Board and Mr. Neville.

My d@isayproval of the publication by the Government of
Mr.Hobson's paper was not based primarily on the fact that it
would teach errors instead of facts and therefore mislead the
people instead of educating them; if this were the end of the
matter we could rest assured that they would digest its errors
without harm. But the paper contains enormous potentialities
for harm to the mental health of the people; it is proposed

to send out, with the indorsement of the United States Government,
50,000,000 copies of a document , the general tone of which

is "that everyone is surrounded by enemies in the guise of friends
who are scheming in every possible way to get into them, by way
of food or other means, a dose or two of heroin in order that
they, too, may become fiendish addicts working to addict the
rest of the world. From the practical as well as from the
scientific standpoint everyone who has intelligently studied

the narcotics question knows that such a state of affairs cannot
exist. This document is to be placed on every breakfast table
and in every school and institution in order that everyone may
be constantly reminded of the danger which surrounds them.

There are thousands of nervous, fearfal, suspicious persons

now making good who would be forced over the border line into
ineanity or a profound neurosis if they are made to believe

that a new evil is about to engulf them. Many of the border-line
cases would develop delusions that they were being doped. Paychi-
trists with whom I have talked about this matter agree that

such a state of affairs would be likely to be brought about

and every one interested in mental hygiene should, as a pmablic
heal th measure, disapprove of the pengones di st ri ba tion of this

document.

| Based on years of study by Dre A. G. Duliez and resi, an
article was published in the Pablic Health Reporte of May 23,1924,
showing that addiction has been decreasing in the United States :
since 1900 and that there are now about 110,000 addicts in
this country; inasmuch as Mr.Hobson states or implies that there
are millions of addicts here and that the number is constantly
inereasing, some extracts from. medical, pharmacuetical and
chemical magazines commenting on this article are given
herewith for your info mation:
fing

oui
ret
-,

The Surgeon General: | ae -3= Auge20,1924.

Journal A.M.A. June 14,1924: Vobs 82, No.24, p.1975:

"The contrast between propaganda statements of the
character of the leaflet referred to (Mr.Hobson's Leaflet)
and the calm, scientific report of the officials of the

- United States Public Health Service is a striking one.

Confidence of the public in work for the public health is
more likely to be sustained by the publication of acourate
statements of fact than by unwarranted and exaggerated
warnings concer ning conditions that do not exist".

Jou rms of the Am. Pharm, Agen. July, 1984, VoleXIII, No.7, pe674:
"Kolb and DuMez, the authors of this Public Health Report,

have rendered a distinct service,in determining by mch scien-
tific means as are available, the maximum number of addicts."

. &m. dour. Pharm. August ,1924, Vol.96, No.8, p.546:

"Reports of Governmental Bureaus are very commonly
dessicated and unpleasant to browse over, but here is one at
least that gives comfort to every citizen--and the authors are
to be congratulated on the completeness of their compilation
and for the blessed joy that is in their message."

The NeAsR-D. Journal: July 53,1924: VoleXXXVIIL, Noe14,p.548:

"The resalt of a thorough etudy of the prevalence and
trend of drug addiction in the United States and factors influencing
it go a long way toward clearing up many theories covering |

thie question. Dr.lawrence Kolb and Dr.A.@G.Duves of the

United States ?ublic Health Service, recently completed a study
of this much<-discussed question andi their report is based

upon facts, not theory. The simmary and conelusion of this
investigation are very enlightening and areprinted herewi th

for that reason: "

Industrial and Kngineering Chemistry: duly ,1924: VYol.16,No.7,
pp e662 and 663;

"Kolb and Dallez, the authors of this public Health Report,
have rendered a distinct serftice in deterwining by such scien-
tific means as are available the maximum number of addicts”

"The data, the analysis, and discussion, as well as the

oone nai ous reported, dese ve wide dissemination."