The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-08-03

| CREATING THE INTERNAL REVENUE Laws
| ARTIST OF SOME OF THE OFFENDERs.-Tt has
been brought to the knowledge of the Govern.
| ment detectives that for some time past persons
have been in the habit OF dstiling whsks
without paving license, to an almost unlimited
| extent. Although their operations covering in
the aggregate millions OF dollars, were very cum
| ningly concealed, the detectives managed to
| spring trap on them, and we will soon hear OF
rich developments. great part OF the business
was in distlling molasses whisky, or, as 1t dp-
| peared IN the market, Jamaica Rum.n
now 10 reach these people was the question
mat perplexed the officers. The business Of
| sellng without first paying the tax had driven
legitimate distillers from the market, and the
| result was that the Government not only lost the
tax from those who we're delrauding the reve-
| nue., but at the same time there was falling of
| in the amount from other quarters. The Corn
! Exchange became interested, but nothing was
! hit upon calculated to break up the illicit trade
Finally, the Treasury Department appointed
! special commission, of which Charles T. Bon
! sail, Esq, OF this city, was the head His know
! ledge Of the revenue laws enabled him to Law
! out the plan by means of which the parties have
at last come to grief. With Mr. Bonsall was
associated, among others, Mr.. ]. @. Horton,
| Revenue Inspector, who had made the subject
of distilling special study and was, therefore,
competent to discover the character and capacity
| o still upon inspection. At he starting point
! 1t was discovered that the people engaged in the
Illicit trade had combined together into an asso.
| citation, in order to resist all investigation.
Through this association the movements Of the
| Government officers we're traced and the alarm
| given at the first approach of danger. As the
! regular revenue officers must go on their visits
| slngly, and can be in no more than one portion
of their district at the same time, it was easy to
| watch them and prepare for their coming. This
| was overcome.
About the 1st of June most of these distillers
took ont for the first time a license. This fixed
| their location and capacity, amount of bond,
! etc. The molasses whisky distillers were con.
| gTegated about Twenty third and South
| Twenty-second and Pine and localities along
the Schuylkill, from Market street to far below
! South.
Parties in the Government service were sent
| to these suspected places to hire themselves as
| help Boatmen were employed on the river
| front, and after nighttall men ostensibly doing
business as removers OF night soil were employed
by the detective department as SPIES
Although every conceivable method was
taken 10 eludel the observation OF the Govern
| ment spies, some of them were, after few
weeks, unearthed and brought to the bar of
! Justice.
As sample of the testimony against the par
ties, we give the hearing had in one case yester
| day at noon, before Commissioner Sergeant.
! Hugh Keenan,, of Twenty-fourth and Pine
| streets, was charged in the warrant with neg
! lecting to make true and exact entry and report
| OF the number of gallons distilled; also, the
number sold or removed for consumption or
| sale.n
Mr.. Horton testified that he visited the place,
| and found two barrels of whisky in a shed a1-
| joining the distillery; found Mr. Keenan's book
| there, but did not remove it at the time but OBJ
tanned it subsequently,; when first seen 1t had an
entry OF 10 gallons OF whisky for July; but since
| the visit he has entered 20 gallons more; the
| book also contained the entry of 20 gallons of
| molasses.
MIR. Valentine, Assistant District Attorney,
| called attention to the fact that the book was
not kept properly, inasmuch as there was no
| tri-monthly reports, as required by the 6Sth
| section of the act of Congress, if less than $50
| barrels a year are manufactured, or monthly
reports where the annual amount exceeds l5O
| barrels.
After some other cross questioning and arguing
the case was closed. The Commissioner held
| the defendant in $1,000 to answer Edward Martin,
of No. 1920 Market street, waived a hearing.
| The other parties will have a hearing in few
| days. In the meantime, they are required to
| 90 before the Assessor of the District and make
| answers in regard to their manufacturer and
| here it is that most of them convict themselves.
| They have several gallons of molasses entered
| upon their books, while the product in whisky
| is represented to be, on an average per cent
| OF the amount of material, when, in fact it
| should yield from so to 20 per cent. Large
quantities of whisky have been seized within a
few days, and an effort will now be made to
| secure to the Government the amount of revenue
withheld, which, if One-half capacity is allowed
to the number of stills given above, will make
the amount 100000 per Gay for the past two
months. The system of detraudIng the Govern
| ment has been i'll operation about six months,
| and the officers estimated that within a circuit
of ten miles from the State House the Govern
ment has been detrauded to the extent of over
MSUICIDE OF A BURGLAR AT THE EAST
RRN PENITENIIARY.-A young Engllshman
named Henry Walker, convicted of burglary,
was sentenced on September Is, 1866 TO three
years imprisonment in the Eastern Peniten-
tiary. After being received there he gradually
became melancholy, and at last showed symp.
toms OF insanity. He was very respectfully con-
nected in his own country, and evinced morbid
horror of any discovery by them of his disgrace.
He was found yesterday morning suspended to
the bar of his cell by rope that he had extern
porized from his clothing. He was stark aud
cold when found Upon the slate in his cell he
had wrtten:-
IN. B.-To my keeper:-Take warning by this.
My spirit shall haunt you as long as you live.
You see have to sacrifice my life for the truth.
Take warning"
In thirty.seven years there have been incarce.
rated in the Eastern Penitentiary 559l persons.
Out of these, in all that we're there there have
been but fifteen suicides.
SUIcIDE.-Y Yesterday morning an unknown
man committed suicide at Greenwich Point
The deceased was about forty-hve years of age
5 feet inches in height, brown hair, smooth
face. He had on blue sack coat, black pants
navy undershirt, and white shirt. His left arm
was marked with the initials sc. G. ST." and
under these initials were IN. H. g." The Coro