To opium smoking will not deter the wife away from satisfying his appetite. Doctors knew about the drugs addictive potential. Their fears were confirmed when they realized many were addicted to the narcotic. F finally after many years of discovering the problems of smoking opium, the general surgeons got a pass banning the substance. In 1896, a town that once housed at least a dozen opium dens became the First Community in the United States to pass an ordinance against smoking opium. From there, other nevada towns, as well as the state legislature, passed antiopium den legislation. Voters knew, however, that si l simply banning the drug wasnt enough. They knew it could easily be smuggled into the United States. So they added their voices to the chinese hoping to keep them from coming to the United States. As a result of their work, the physicians and journalists helped close the door to chinese immigration in 1882. But federal legislation to ban smoking opium did not come until 1909, t