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c.3400B.C.Theopiumpoppyiscultivatedinlower
Mesopotamia.TheSumeriansrefertoitasHul
Gil,the'joyplant.'TheSumerianswouldsoon
passalongtheplantanditseuphoriceffectsto
theAssyrians.Theartofpoppycullingwould
continuefromtheAssyrianstothe
Babylonianswhointurnwouldpasstheir
knowledgeontotheEgyptians.

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c.1300B.C.InthecapitalcityofThebes,Egyptiansbegin
cultivationofopiumthebaicum,grownintheir
famouspoppyfields.Theopiumtrade
flourishesduringthereignofThutmoseIV,
AkhenatonandKingTutankhamen.Thetrade
routeincludedthePhoeniciansandMinoans
whomovetheprofitableitemacrossthe
MediterraneanSeaintoGreece,Carthage,and
Europe.

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c.1100B.C.OntheislandofCyprus,the"Peoplesofthe
Sea"craftsurgicalqualitycullingknivesto
harvestopium,whichtheywouldcultivate,
tradeandsmokebeforethefallofTroy.
c.460B.C.Hippocrates,"thefatherofmedicine",
dismissesthemagicalattributesofopiumbut
acknowledgesitsusefulnessasanarcoticand
stypticintreatinginternaldiseases,diseasesof
womenandepidemics.

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330B.C.AlexandertheGreatintroducesopiumtothe
peopleofPersiaandIndia.

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A.D.400Opiumthebaicum,fromtheEgytpianfieldsat
Thebes,isfirstintroducedtoChinabyArab
traders.
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1300'sOpiumdisappearsfortwohundredyearsfrom
Europeanhistoricalrecord.Opiumhad
becomeataboosubjectforthoseincirclesof
learningduringtheHolyInquisition.Inthe
eyesoftheInquisition,anythingfromtheEast
waslinkedtotheDevil.

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1500ThePortugese,whiletradingalongtheEast
ChinaSea,initiatethesmokingofopium.The
effectswereinstantaneousastheydiscovered
butitwasapracticetheChineseconsidered
barbaricandsubversive.
1527DuringtheheightoftheReformation,opium
isreintroducedintoEuropeanmedical
literaturebyParacelsusaslaudanum.These
blackpillsor"StonesofImmortality"were
madeofopiumthebaicum,citrusjuiceand
quintessenceofgoldandprescribedas
painkillers.
1600'sResidentsofPersiaandIndiabegineatingand
drinkingopiummixturesforrecreationaluse.
Portugesemerchantscarryingcargoesof
IndianopiumthroughMacaodirectitstrade
flowintoChina.
1606ShipscharteredbyElizabethIareinstructedto
purchasethefinestIndianopiumandtransport
itbacktoEngland.
1680Englishapothecary,ThomasSydenham,
introducesSydenham'sLaudanum,a
compoundofopium,sherrywineandherbs.
Hispillsalongwithothersofthetimebecome
popularremediesfornumerousailments.
1700TheDutchexportshipmentsofIndianopium
toChinaandtheislandsofSoutheastAsiathe
Dutchintroducethepracticeofsmoking
opiuminatobaccopipetotheChinese.
1729Chineseemperor,YungCheng,issuesan
edictprohibitingthesmokingofopiumandits
domesticsale,exceptunderlicenseforuseas
medicine.
1750TheBritishEastIndiaCompanyassumes
controlofBengalandBihar,opiumgrowing
districtsofIndia.Britishshippingdominates
theopiumtradeoutofCalcuttatoChina.
1753Linnaeus,thefatherofbotany,firstclassifies
thepoppy,Papaversomniferum'sleep
inducing',inhisbookGeneraPlantarum.
1767TheBritishEastIndiaCompany'simportof
opiumtoChinareachesastaggeringtwo
thousandchestsofopiumperyear.
1793TheBritishEastIndiaCompanyestablishesa
monopolyontheopiumtrade.Allpoppy
growersinIndiawereforbiddentosellopium
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tocompetitortradingcompanies.
1799China'semperor,KiaKing,bansopium
completely,makingtradeandpoppy
cultivationillegal.
1800TheBritishLevantCompanypurchasesnearly
halfofalloftheopiumcomingoutofSmyrna,
TurkeystrictlyforimportationtoEuropeand
theUnitedStates.
1803FriedrichSertuernerofPaderborn,Germany
discoverstheactiveingredientofopiumby
dissolvingitinacidthenneutralizingitwith
ammonia.Theresult:alkaloidsPrincipium
somniferumormorphine.
Physiciansbelievethatopiumhadfinallybeen
perfectedandtamed.Morphineislaudedas
"God'sownmedicine"foritsreliablity,long
lastingeffectsandsafety.
1805AsmugglerfromBoston,Massachusetts,
CharlesCabot,attemptstopurchaseopium
fromtheBritish,thensmuggleitintoChina
undertheauspicesofBritishsmugglers.
1812AmericanJohnCushing,undertheemployof
hisuncles'business,JamesandThomasH.
PerkinsCompanyofBoston,acquireshis
wealthfromsmugglingTurkishopiumto
Canton.
1816JohnJacobAstorofNewYorkCityjoinsthe
opiumsmugglingtrade.HisAmericanFur
CompanypurchasestentonsofTurkishopium
thenshipsthecontrabanditemtoCantonon
theMacedonian.Astorwouldlaterleavethe
ChinaopiumtradeandsellsolelytoEngland.
1819WriterJohnKeatsandotherEnglishliterary
personalitiesexperimentwithopiumintended
forstrictrecreationalusesimplyforthehigh
andtakenatextended,nonaddictiveintervals

1821ThomasDeQuinceypublisheshis
autobiographicalaccountofopiumaddiction,
'ConfessionsofanEnglishOpiumeater.'
1827E.Merck&CompanyofDarmstadt,
Germany,beginscommercialmanufacturing
ofmorphine.
1830TheBritishdependenceonopiumfor
medicinalandrecreationalusereachesanall
timehighas22,000poundsofopiumis
importedfromTurkeyandIndia.
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JardineMatheson&CompanyofLondon
inheritIndiaanditsopiumfromtheBritish
EastIndiaCompanyoncethemandatetorule
anddictatethetradepoliciesofBritishIndia
arenolongerineffect.
1837ElizabethBarrettBrowningfallsunderthe
spellofmorphine.This,however,doesnot
impedeherabilitytowrite"poetical
paragraphs."
March18,1839LinTseHsu,imperialChinesecommissioner
inchargeofsuppressingtheopiumtraffic,
ordersallforeigntraderstosurrendertheir
opium.Inresponse,theBritishsend
expenditionarywarshipstothecoastofChina,
beginningTheFirstOpiumWar.
1840NewEnglandersbring24,000poundsof
opiumintotheUnitedStates.Thiscatchesthe
attentionofU.S.Customswhichpromptly
putsadutyfeeontheimport.
1841TheChinesearedefeatedbytheBritishinthe
FirstOpiumWar.Alongwithpayingalarge
indemnity,HongKongiscededtotheBritish.
1843Dr.AlexanderWoodofEdinburghdiscoversa
newtechniqueofadministeringmorphine,
injectionwithasyringe.Hefindstheeffectsof
morphineonhispatientsinstantaneousand
threetimesmorepotent.
1852TheBritisharriveinlowerBurma,importing
largequantitiesofopiumfromIndiaand
sellingitthroughagovernmentcontrolled
opiummonopoly.
1856TheBritishandFrenchrenewtheirhostilities
againstChinaintheSecondOpiumWar.In
theaftermathofthestruggle,Chinaisforced
topayanotherindemnity.Theimportationof
opiumislegalized.
Opiumproductionincreasesalongthe
highlandsofSoutheastAsia.
1874Englishresearcher,C.R.Wrightfirst
synthesizesheroin,ordiacetylmorphine,by
boilingmorphineoverastove.
InSanFrancisco,smokingopiuminthecity
limitsisbannedandisconfinedtoneighboring
Chinatownsandtheiropiumdens.
1878BritainpassestheOpiumActwithhopesof
reducingopiumconsumption.Underthenew
regulation,thesellingofopiumisrestrictedto
registeredChineseopiumsmokersandIndian
opiumeaterswhiletheBurmesearestrictly
prohibitedfromsmokingopium.
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1886TheBritishacquireBurma'snortheastregion,
theShanstate.Productionandsmugglingof
opiumalongthelowerregionofBurma
thrivesdespiteBritisheffortstomaintaina
strictmonopolyontheopiumtrade.
1890U.S.Congress,initsearliestlawenforcement
legislationonnarcotics,imposesataxon
opiumandmorphine.
TabloidsownedbyWilliamRandolphHearst
publishstoriesofwhitewomenbeingseduced
byChinesemenandtheiropiumtoinvoke
fearofthe'YellowPeril',disguisedasan
"antidrug"campaign.
1895HeinrichDreserworkingforTheBayer
CompanyofElberfeld,Germany,findsthat
dilutingmorphinewithacetylsproducesa
drugwithoutthecommonmorphineside
effects.Bayerbeginsproductionof
diacetylmorphineandcoinsthename"heroin."
Heroinwouldnotbeintroducedcommercially
foranotherthreeyears.
Early1900'sThephilanthropicSaintJamesSocietyinthe
U.S.mountsacampaigntosupplyfree
samplesofherointhroughthemailto
morphineaddictswhoaretryinggiveuptheir
habits.
EffortsbytheBritishandFrenchtocontrol
opiumproductioninSoutheastAsiaare
successful.Nevertheless,thisSoutheast
region,referredtoasthe'GoldenTriangle',
eventuallybecomesamajorplayerinthe
profitableopiumtradeduringthe1940's.
1902Invariousmedicaljournals,physiciansdiscuss
thesideeffectsofusingheroinasamorphine
stepdowncure.Severalphysicianswould
arguethattheirpatientssufferedfromheroin
withdrawalsymptomsequaltomorphine
addiction.
1903Heroinaddictionrisestoalarmingrates.
1905U.S.Congressbansopium.
1906ChinaandEnglandfinallyenactatreaty
restrictingtheSinoIndianopiumtrade.
Severalphysiciansexperimentwithtreatments
forheroinaddiction.Dr.AlexanderLambert
andCharlesB.Townstouttheirpopularcure
asthemost"advanced,effectiveand
compassionatecure"forheroinaddiction.The
cureconsistedofa7dayregimen,which
includedafivedaypurgeofheroinfromthe
addict'ssystemwithdosesofbelladonna
delirium.
U.S.CongresspassesthePureFoodandDrug
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Actrequiringcontentslabelingonpatent
medicinesbypharmaceuticalcompanies.Asa
result,theavailabiltyofopiatesandopiate
consumerssignificantlydeclines.
1909Thefirstfederaldrugprohibitionpassesinthe
U.S.outlawingtheimporationofopium.It
waspassedinpreparationfortheShanghai
Conference,atwhichtheUSpressesfor
legislationaimedatsuppressingthesaleof
opiumtoChina.
February1,1909TheInternationalOpiumCommission
convenesinShanghai.HeadingtheU.S.
delegationareDr.HamiltonWrightand
EpiscopalBishopHenryBrent.Bothwouldtry
toconvincetheinternationaldelegationofthe
immoralandevileffectsofopium.
1910After150yearsoffailedattemptstoridthe
countryofopium,theChinesearefinally
successfulinconvincingtheBritishto
dismantletheIndiaChinaopiumtrade.

Dec.17,1914ThepassageofHarrisonNarcoticsActwhich
aimstocurbdrug(especiallycocainebutalso
heroin)abuseandaddiction.Itrequires
doctors,pharmacistsandotherswho
prescribednarcoticstoregisterandpayatax.
1923TheU.S.TreasuryDepartment'sNarcotics
Division(thefirstfederaldrugagency)bans
alllegalnarcoticssales.Withtheprohibition
oflegalvenuestopurchaseheroin,addictsare
forcedtobuyfromillegalstreetdealers.
1925Inthewakeofthefirstfederalbanonopium,a
thrivingblackmarketopensupinNewYork's
Chinatown.
1930'sThemajorityofillegalheroinsmuggledinto
theU.S.comesfromChinaandisrefinedin
ShanghaiandTietsin.
Early1940'sDuringWorldWarII,opiumtraderoutesare
blockedandtheflowofopiumfromIndiaand
Persiaiscutoff.Fearfuloflosingtheiropium
monopoly,theFrenchencourageHmong
farmerstoexpandtheiropiumproduction.
19451947BurmagainsitsindependencefromBritainat
theendofWorldWarII.Opiumcultivation
andtradeflourishesintheShanstates.
19481972CorsicangangstersdominatetheU.S.heroin
marketthroughtheirconnectionwithMafia
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drugdistributors.Afterrefiningtheraw
TurkishopiuminMarseillelaboratories,the
heroinismadeeasilyavailableforpurchaseby
junkiesonNewYorkCitystreets.
1950'sU.S.effortstocontainthespreadof
CommunisminAsiainvolvesforging
allianceswithtribesandwarlordsinhabiting
theareasoftheGoldenTriangle,(anexpanse
coveringLaos,ThailandandBurma),thus
providingaccessibilityandprotectionalong
thesoutheastborderofChina.Inorderto
maintaintheirrelationshipwiththewarlords
whilecontinuingtofundthestruggleagainst
communism,theU.S.andFrancesupplythe
drugwarlordsandtheirarmieswith
ammunition,armsandairtransportforthe
productionandsaleofopium.Theresult:an
explosionintheavailabilityandillegalflowof
heroinintotheUnitedStatesandintothe
handsofdrugdealersandaddicts.
1962Burmaoutlawsopium.
19651970U.S.involvementinVietnamisblamedforthe
surgeinillegalheroinbeingsmuggledintothe
States.ToaidU.S.allies,theCentral
IntelligenceAgency(CIA)setsupacharter
airline,AirAmerica,totransportrawopium
fromBurmaandLaos.Aswell,someofthe
opiumwouldbetransportedtoMarseilleby
Corsicangangsterstoberefinedintoheroin
andshippedtotheU.SviatheFrench
connection.Thenumberofheroinaddictsin
theU.S.reachesanestimated750,000.
October1970Legendarysinger,JanisJoplin,isfounddead
atHollywood'sLandmarkHotel,avictimof
an"accidentalheroinoverdose."
1972HeroinexportationfromSoutheastAsia's
GoldenTriangle,controlledbyShanwarlord,
KhunSa,becomesamajorsourceforraw
opiumintheprofitabledrugtrade.
July1,1973PresidentNixoncreatestheDEA(Drug
EnforcementAdministration)undertheJustice
Dept.toconsolidatevirtuallyallfederal
powersofdrugenforcementinasingle
agency.
Mid1970'sSaigonfalls.Theheroinepidemicsubsides.
Thesearchforanewsourceofrawopium
yieldsMexico'sSierraMadre."MexicanMud"
wouldtemporarilyreplace"ChinaWhite"
heroinuntil1978.
1978TheU.S.andMexicangovernmentsfinda
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meanstoeliminatethesourceofrawopium
bysprayingpoppyfieldswithAgentOrange.
Theeradicationplanistermedasuccessasthe
amountof"MexicanMud"intheU.S.drug
marketdeclines.Inresponsetothedecreasein
availabilityof"MexicanMud",anothersource
ofheroinisfoundintheGoldenCrescent
areaIran,AfghanistanandPakistan,creating
adramaticupsurgeintheproductionandtrade
ofillegalheroin.
1982ComedianJohnBelushiofAnimalHouse
fame,diesofaheroincocaine"speedball"
overdose.
Sept.13,1984U.S.StateDepartmentofficialsconclude,after
morethanadecadeofcropsubstitution
programsforThirdWorldgrowersof
marijuana,cocaoropiumpoppies,thatthe
tacticcannotworkwithouteradicationofthe
plantsandcriminalenforcement.Poorresults
arereportedfromeradicationprogramsin
Burma,Pakistan,MexicoandPeru.
1988OpiumproductioninBurmaincreasesunder
theruleoftheStateLawandOrder
RestorationCouncil(SLORC),theBurmese
juntaregime.
Thesinglelargestheroinseizureismadein
Bangkok.TheU.S.suspectsthatthe2,400
poundshipmentofheroin,enroutetoNew
YorkCity,originatedfromtheGolden
Triangleregion,controlledbydrugwarlord,
KhunSa.
1990AU.S.CourtindictsKhunSa,leaderofthe
ShanUnitedArmyandreputeddrugwarlord,
onherointraffickingcharges.TheU.S.
AttorneyGeneral'sofficechargesKhunSa
withimporting3,500poundsofheroininto
NewYorkCityoverthecourseofeighteen
months,aswellasholdinghimresponsiblefor
thesourceoftheheroinseizedinBangkok.
1992Colombia'sdruglordsaresaidtobe
introducingahighgradeformofheroininto
theUnitedStates.
1993TheThaiarmywithsupportfromtheU.S.
DrugEnforcementAgency(DEA)launchesits
operationtodestroythousandsofacresof
opiumpoppiesfromthefieldsoftheGolden
Triangleregion.
October31,1993Herointakesanotherwellknownvictim.
TwentythreeyearoldactorRiverPhoenix
diesofaheroincocaineoverdose,thesame
"speedball"combinationthatkilledcomedian
JohnBelushi.
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January1994Effortstoeradicateopiumatitssource
remainsunsuccessful.TheClinton
Administrationordersashiftinpolicyaway
fromtheantidrugcampaignsofprevious
administrations.Insteadthefocusincludes
"institutionbuilding"withthehopethatby
"strengtheningdemocraticgovernments
abroad,[it]willfosterlawabidingbehavior
andpromotelegitimateeconomic
opportunity."
April1994KurtCobain,leadsingeroftheSeattlebased
alternativerockband,Nirvana,diesofheroin
relatedsuicide.
1995TheGoldenTriangleregionofSoutheastAsia
isnowtheleaderinopiumproduction,
yielding2,500tonsannually.Accordingto
U.S.drugexperts,therearenewdrug
traffickingroutesfromBurmathroughLaos,
tosouthernChina,CambodiaandVietnam.
January1996KhunSa,oneofShanstate'smostpowerful
drugwarlords,"surrenders"toSLORC.The
U.S.issuspiciousandfearsthatthis
agreementbetweentherulingjuntaregime
andKhunSaincludesadealallowing"the
opiumking"toretaincontrolofhisopium
tradebutinexchangeendhis30yearold
revolutionarywaragainstthegovernment.
November1996Internationaldrugtraffickingorganizations,
includingChina,Nigeria,Colombiaand
Mexicoaresaidtobe"aggressivelymarketing
heroinintheUnitedStatesandEurope."
ReferencesBooth,Martin.Opium:AHistory.London:
Simon&Schuster,Ltd.,1996.
Latimer,Dean,andJeffGoldbergwithan
IntroductionbyWilliamBurroughs.Flowers
intheBlood:TheStoryofOpium.NewYork:
FranklinWatts,1981
McCoy,AlfredW.ThePoliticsofHeroin:
CIAComplicityintheGlobalDrugTrade.
NewYork:LawrenceHillBooks,1991.
Musto,DavidF.TheAmericanDisease:
OriginsofNarcoticControl.NewYork:
OxfordUniversityPress,1987.

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