Harrison Narcotics Act
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The Harrison Narcotics Tax Act (Ch. 1, ) was a
United States federal law The law of the United States comprises many levels of Codification (law), codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the supreme law is the nation's Constitution of the United States, Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the ...
that regulated and taxed the production, importation, and distribution of
opiate An opiate is an alkaloid substance derived from opium (or poppy straw). It differs from the similar term ''opioid'' in that the latter is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain ( ...
s and
coca Coca is any of the four cultivated plants in the family Erythroxylaceae, native to western South America. Coca is known worldwide for its psychoactive alkaloid, cocaine. Coca leaves contain cocaine which acts as a mild stimulant when chewed or ...
products. The act was proposed by Representative
Francis Burton Harrison Francis Burton Harrison (December 18, 1873 – November 21, 1957) was an American-Filipino Politics of the United States, statesman who served in the United States House of Representatives and was appointed Governor-General of the Philippines ...
of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
and was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson on December 17, 1914. "An Act To provide for the registration of, with collectors of internal revenue, and to impose a special tax on all persons who produce, import, manufacture, compound, deal in, dispense, sell, distribute, or give away
opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...
or coca leaves, their salts, derivatives, or preparations, and for other purposes." In '' Webb v. United States'', the act was interpreted to prohibit prescribing maintenance doses for narcotics unless it was intended to cure the patient's addiction. The Harrison anti-narcotic
legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred ...
consisted of three U.S. House bills imposing restrictions on the availability and consumption of the
psychoactive drug A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, mind-altering drug, consciousness-altering drug, psychoactive substance, or psychotropic substance is a chemical substance that alters psychological functioning by modulating central nervous system acti ...
opium. House Resolution (H.R.) 1966 and passed conjointly with (the Opium and Coca Leaves Trade Restrictions Act). Although technically illegal for purposes of distribution and use, the distribution, sale and use of
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
was still legal for registered companies and individuals.


Background


International

Following the
Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...
and the
Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...
, the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
saw a proliferation of
opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...
use. A
cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...
outbreak in 1902 further strengthened this tendency due to the
astringent An astringent (sometimes called adstringent) is a chemical that shrinks or constricts body tissues. The word derives from the Latin '' adstringere'', which means "to bind fast". Astringency, the dry, puckering or numbing mouthfeel caused by t ...
properties of opium. Charles Henry Brent was an American Episcopal bishop who served as Missionary Bishop of the Philippines beginning in 1901. He convened a Commission of Inquiry, known as the Brent Commission, for the purpose of examining alternatives to a licensing system for opium addicts. Although Governor William Taft supported this policy, Brent opposed it "on moral grounds". The Commission recommended that narcotics should be subject to international control. The recommendations of the Brent Commission were endorsed by the
United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...
and in 1906 President
Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
called for an international conference, the
International Opium Commission The International Opium Commission was a meeting convened on February 1 to February 26, 1909, in Shanghai that was one of the first steps toward international drug prohibition. History Hamilton Wright and Charles Henry Brent headed the U.S. d ...
, which was held in Shanghai in February 1909. A second conference was held at
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
in May 1911, and out of it came the first international drug control treaty, the
International Opium Convention The expression International Opium Convention refers either to the first International Opium Convention signed at The Hague in 1912, or to the second International Opium Convention signed at Geneva in 1925. First International Opium Convention ...
of 1912.


Domestic

Between 1895 and 1900 there were probably more morphine addicts in the United States than today on a per capita basis. Opium usage peaked in 1896 and then began to decline gradually. Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., then dean Harvard Medical school, blamed the prevalence of opiate addiction on ignorance. As awareness of the addictiveness of morphine and patent medicines grew public opinion in the 1890s was in favor of state laws restricting morphine. Demand gradually declined thereafter in response to mounting public concern, local and state regulations, and the
Pure Food and Drug Act The s:Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, also known as the Wiley Act and Harvey Washington Wiley, Dr. Wiley's Law, was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws enacted by the United States Con ...
of 1906, which required labeling of patent medicines that contained opiates, cocaine, alcohol, cannabis and other intoxicants. By 1914, forty-six states had regulations on cocaine and twenty-nine states had laws against opium, morphine, and heroin. p. 572 (Google Print)


Opium

In the 1800s
opiate An opiate is an alkaloid substance derived from opium (or poppy straw). It differs from the similar term ''opioid'' in that the latter is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain ( ...
s were mostly unregulated drugs. Morphine addiction had spread rapidly during and after the Civil war. The consumption of household remedies and marketed syrups containing morphine was commonplace and mostly associated with the upper and middle class of society. Many women who were prescribed and dispensed legal opiates by physicians and pharmacist for "female problems" (probably pain at menstruation) became addicted. It's likely many who became addicted initially did not know what the syrups and concoctions contained. Although morphine syrups were easily available, opium smoking was already banned by many municipalities. There was more hostility to opium smoking than
laudanum Laudanum is a tincture of opium containing approximately 10% powdered opium by weight (the equivalent of 1% morphine). Laudanum is prepared by dissolving extracts from the opium poppy (''Papaver somniferum'') in alcohol (ethanol). Reddish-br ...
and other widely available tonics because of anti-Chinese sentiments and accusations that proprietors lured young white girls to opium dens. Chinese immigrants were blamed for importing the opium-smoking habit to the U.S. The 1903 blue-ribbon citizens' panel, the Committee on the Acquirement of the Drug Habit, concluded: "If the
Chinaman ''Chinaman'' () is an offensive term referring to a Chinese man or person, or widely a person native to geographical East Asia or of perceived East Asian ethnicity. The term is noted as having pejorative overtones by modern dictionaries. Its ...
cannot get along without his dope we can get along without him." Heroin use became widespread among low-income immigrants in the early 20th century. In the 1890s, the Sears & Roebuck catalogue started offering a syringe and a small amount of cocaine or heroin for $1.50.


Cocaine

Cocaine was first isolated in 1855. Within a few decades public opinion had associated cocaine use with crime sprees committed by black men. There were many hysterical news reports in the early 20th-century about cocaine-fueled rampages using hyperbole like "cocaine-crazed negro" and others exaggerating the addictiveness of cocaine saying it quickly reduced users to "another entry in Satan's ledger". In 1900, the ''
Journal of the American Medical Association ''JAMA'' (''The Journal of the American Medical Association'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 48 times a year by the American Medical Association. It publishes original research, reviews, and editorials covering all aspects of ...
'' published an editorial stating, "
Negro In the English language, the term ''negro'' (or sometimes ''negress'' for a female) is a term historically used to refer to people of Black people, Black African heritage. The term ''negro'' means the color black in Spanish and Portuguese (from ...
es in the South are reported as being addicted to a new form of vice – that of 'cocaine sniffing' or the 'coke habit. A well-known article published in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' on February 8, 1914 claimed cocaine use caused blacks to rape white women. This article and similar articles of the era, however, do not provide examples of such crimes. The people who made such allegations used racism to manipulate public opinion, but their allegations were unfounded. The article titled ''Negro Cocaine 'Fiends' Are a New Southern Menace'' is remembered for its portrayal of "the cocaine-crazed negro" who was invulnerable to bullets. The use of the term "fiends" by Dr. Edward Huntington Williams, the author of the article, is understood to connote the demonization of the non-white drug user. According to historian David F. Musto public opinion about cocaine turned negative as newspapers and even ''
Good Housekeeping ''Good Housekeeping'' is an American lifestyle media brand that covers a wide range of topics from home decor and renovation, health, beauty and food, to entertainment, pets and gifts. The Good Housekeeping Institute which opened its "Experiment ...
'' scapegoated the drug to explain rising crime in the South:
Thus the problem of cocaine proceeded from an association with Negroes in about 1900, when a massive repression and disenfranchisement were under way in the South, to a convenient explanation for crime waves, and eventually Northerners used it as an argument against Southern fear of infringement of states's rights.
Despite the extreme racialization of the issue that took place in the buildup to the act's passage, contemporary research in Northern cities found relatively few cocaine users compared with alcoholics and opium addicts overall and no significant concentration among blacks. Blacks did use "patent medicines" containing opiates and cocaine for pulmonary conditions. It's possible that higher rates of disease among blacks in the early 20th century may explain why blacks consumed patent medicines more than whites.


Hearings

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
appointed Dr. Hamilton Wright as the first opium commissioner of the United States in 1908. Wright testified at the hearing about the dangers alleging that drugs made blacks uncontrollable, gave them superhuman powers and caused them to rebel against white authority. He said cocaine was often "the direct incentive to the crime of rape of white women by Negroes". He also stated that "one of the most unfortunate phases of smoking opium in this country is the large number of women who have become involved and were living as common-law wives or cohabitating with Chinese in the Chinatowns of our various cities". Wetherington states that the 1909 Shanghai Commission made this comment. Dr. Christopher Koch of the State Pharmacy Board of Pennsylvania testified of the dangerous "cocaine-crazed" blacks in the South: "Most of the attacks upon the white women of the South are the direct result of a cocaine-crazed Negro brain". Writing in 1953 Rufus G. King explained that the Harrison Act was "intended partly to carry out a treaty obligation, but mainly to aid the states in combating a local police problem which had gotten somewhat out of hand."


Congressional passage

When Representative
Francis Burton Harrison Francis Burton Harrison (December 18, 1873 – November 21, 1957) was an American-Filipino Politics of the United States, statesman who served in the United States House of Representatives and was appointed Governor-General of the Philippines ...
of
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
placed HR 1966 for debate before the full
House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
on June 26, 1913, he began by noting that the Smoking Opium Exclusion Act of 1909 failed to limit importation of opium because it regulated the maritime shipping industry, rather than the individual drug users. In Harrison's view, shipping companies could evade regulation by forging documents and smuggling opium across the
Mexico–United States border The international border separating Mexico and the United States extends from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. It is the List of ...
, whereas individual drug users would struggle to dispute their role in smuggling networks. The
Congressional Record The ''Congressional Record'' is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress, published by the United States Government Publishing Office and issued when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record Ind ...
showcases that the House was unsure whether the
Commerce Clause The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and amon ...
actually permitted the federal government to restrict what types of goods could be exported, but the chamber adopted an expansive view based on dicta from the 1904
antitrust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...
case '' Northern Securities Co. v. United States''. While the House agreed that the
Export Clause Article One of the Constitution of the United States establishes the legislative branch of the federal government, the United States Congress. Under Article One, Congress is a bicameral legislature consisting of the House of Representatives and t ...
clearly prohibits taxing exported opium, they were divided as to whether they could outright prohibit such exports. Though the 1906
Pure Food and Drug Act The s:Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, also known as the Wiley Act and Harvey Washington Wiley, Dr. Wiley's Law, was the first of a series of significant consumer protection laws enacted by the United States Con ...
prohibited the importation of adulterated or misbranded food and drugs, that law was considered a product standard, whereas the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act would not allow any form of opium as imports or exports. Congress would not attempt another restriction on the types of goods that can be exported until the 1940
Export Control Act The Export Control Act of 1940 was one in a series of legislative efforts by the US government and initially the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to accomplish two tasks: to avoid scarcity of critical commodities in a likely p ...
. Representative Thomas U. Sisson of
Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...
objected to restricting the market for narcotics as encroaching on state police power in violation of the Tenth Amendment. Harrison admitted that the federal authority to tax those involved in the market for narcotics under the
Taxing and Spending Clause The Taxing and Spending Clause (which contains provisions known as the General Welfare Clause and the Uniformity Clause), Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution, grants the federal government of the United States its ...
was weak because the federal government stood to earn more in import taxes without this act. Surprisingly, Sisson and Harrison were in agreement that the bill would allow physicians to continue prescribing narcotics as part of medical treatment for those with
substance use disorder Substance use disorder (SUD) is the persistent use of drugs despite substantial harm and adverse consequences to self and others. Related terms include ''substance use problems'' and ''problematic drug or alcohol use''. Along with substance-ind ...
, yet the act's enforcement by the
Commissioner of Internal Revenue The Commissioner of Internal Revenue is the head of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), an agency within the United States Department of the Treasury. The office of Commissioner was created by United States Congress, Congress as part of the Reven ...
frequently prosecuted such patients. p. 14-19


Enforcement

Enforcement began in 1915. The act appears to be mainly concerned about the marketing of opiates. However, a clause applying to doctors allowed distribution "in the course of his professional practice only." Physicians believed relieving the suffering of physical dependance was within the "professional practice" exception. King says "there is not the slightest suggestion that Congress intended to change this". He says the public hysteria surrounding contemporaneous press reports about violent "dope fiends" probably distorted the Congressional intent and turned addicts into criminals. The "professional practice" clause was interpreted after 1917 to mean that a doctor could not prescribe opiates to an addict. Addicts and doctors were jailed for decades under theories adopted by the Narcotics Division that addiction could not be successfully treated in a clinical setting. A number of doctors were arrested and some were imprisoned. The medical profession quickly learned not to supply opiates to addicts. In ''United States v. Doremus'', 249 U.S. 86 (1919), the Supreme Court ruled that the Harrison Act was constitutional, and in '' Webb v. United States'', 249 U.S. 96, 99 (1919) that physicians could not prescribe narcotics solely for maintenance. The impact of diminished supply was obvious by mid-1915. A 1918 commission called for sterner law enforcement, while newspapers published sensational articles about addiction-related crime waves. Congress responded by tightening up the Harrison Act—the importation of
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...
for any purpose was banned in 1924.
Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
William Gibbs McAdoo William Gibbs McAdoo Jr.McAdoo is variously differentiated from family members of the same name: * Dr. William Gibbs McAdoo (1820–1894) – sometimes called "I" or "Senior" * William Gibbs McAdoo (1863–1941) – sometimes called "II" or "J ...
appointed Representative Henry T. Rainey to lead a special committee to investigate the law's effects. In June 1919, this Rainey Committee found that criminal organizations were smuggling drugs into the country across all four of the United States' coastal and land borders.The Consumers Union Report on Licit and Illicit Drugs
Edward M. Brecher and the Editors of ''Consumer Reports'' magazine, 1972
Annually, the United States consumed 470,000 pounds of opium, whereas France and Germany each purchased around 17,000 pounds of opium. While the United States' 1920 population of 106 million was far larger than France's 1921 population of 39 million and Germany's 1920 population of 62 million,
per capita ''Per capita'' is a Latin phrase literally meaning "by heads" or "for each head", and idiomatically used to mean "per person". Social statistics The term is used in a wide variety of social science, social sciences and statistical research conte ...
opium consumption was still much higher in America. Based on the US Department of Commerce's monthly summaries of foreign commerce, between July 1919 and January 1920, imports of opium increased to 528,635 pounds from only 74,650 pounds during the same period a year prior.


Challenges

In the 1919 cases '' United States v. Doremus'' and '' Webb v. United States'', the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act was upheld by the
Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
under an expansive reading of the
Taxing and Spending Clause The Taxing and Spending Clause (which contains provisions known as the General Welfare Clause and the Uniformity Clause), Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution, grants the federal government of the United States its ...
based on the earlier '' License Tax Cases'' (1866). The act's applicability in prosecuting
doctors Doctor, Doctors, The Doctor or The Doctors may refer to: Titles and occupations * Physician, a medical practitioner * Doctor (title), an academic title for the holder of a doctoral-level degree ** Doctorate ** List of doctoral degrees awarded b ...
who prescribe narcotics to addicts was successfully challenged in '' Linder v. United States'' in 1925, as Associate Justice
James Clark McReynolds James Clark McReynolds (February 3, 1862 – August 24, 1946) was an American lawyer and judge from Tennessee who served as United States Attorney General under President Woodrow Wilson and as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the Unit ...
ruled that the federal government has no power to regulate medical practice.


See also

* Arguments for and against drug prohibition *
Prohibition of drugs The prohibition of drugs through sumptuary legislation or religious law is a common means of attempting to prevent the recreational use of certain intoxicating substances. An area has a prohibition of drugs when its government uses the for ...


References


Sources

* * * * * * * *


External links

* {{cite web, url=http://www.erowid.org/psychoactives/law/law_fed_harrison_narcotics_act.shtml, title=The Harrison Narcotics Act (1914), website=Psychoactives ~ Law, publisher=Erowid.org (full text) 1914 in American law History of drug control in the United States United States federal controlled substances legislation United States federal taxation legislation Pharmaceutical regulation in the United States