SOCIAL WELFARE

Manawatu Standard, Volume L, Issue 220, 13 August 1930, Page 7

SOCIAL WELFARE

WORK OF LEAGUE OF NATIONS, EXTENT OF OPIUM TRAFFIC. CONFERENCE AT HONOLULU. (United Press Association.—By Electric Telegraph.—Copy right.) Received August 13, 10.5 a.m. HONOLULU, Aug. 12. Great enthusiasm was evoked by an .address delivered by Dame Rachel Crowdy on the social and xvelfare work of the League of Nations at a public meeting of the Women’s Pan-Pacific Conference. Dame Rachel dealt briefly with the opium question, describing the international character of the traffic, with the consequent difficulty of control. The speaker referred to the reports of the committee investigating the Traffic in women and children. There was no central dominating figure in the traffic, but there was close co-oper-ation between the individuals concerned. Miss Abbott, o the United States Child Welfare Bureau, was responsible for a suggestion that an investigation should be carried out. The investigation is to be continued in Asiatic countries, on the suggestion of the Japanese League delegate. The subject of the opium traffic was continued by Dame Crowdy at a public luncheon ai'ranged by the PanPacific Union to-day. The international machinery for control was described. The publicity given to the seizures of the drug and the names of the firms and individuals concerned was one of the chief means of checking the traffic and had valuable results. Annual reports were being supplied by countries ratifying the Opium Convention, giving the quantities imported, exported, manufactured and required for medical purposes. The value of cocaine, stated l)ame Crowdy, made the smuggling of minute quantities profitable, hence the great ingenuity of the methods adopted and the difficulty of detection. An interesting reception was held by the Pan-Pacific Institute at Manoa Valley. Thanks were expressed in the Samoan language, by Miss Jean Begg, of New Zealand, and the American and Chinese delegates. The conference work began to-day with a survey by Miss Jean Begg of social service problems. A keen discussion followed. Interest was shown in the Australian experiment of an unemployment tax.