The truth about opium : $b being a refutation of the fallacies of the Anti-Opium Society and a defence of the Indo-China opium trade

"The Truth About Opium" by William H. Brereton is a late 19th-century argument defending the Indo-China opium trade. Brereton combats what he describes as false statements made by the Anti-Opium Society regarding opium use and its impact on the people of China. Using his years of experience living in Hong Kong, where opium use was common, the author aims to contradict perceptions of opium as an extremely harmful substance. He disputes the idea that opium smoking causes great harm to the people of China, because he saw it used without problem in Hong Kong. The book attempts to correct misunderstandings around the use of opium and claims that accounts of addiction and societal problems are overblown. Brereton makes the controversial assertion that the substance, when used in moderation, does not cause any harm.