The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-08-15
s'The Revenue Law and Distilled
- SDirits.0

70 ne Editor OF The BUenty0 TeLe0raEh:--
Idon't know how or whore you got the infor-
nation contained in your editorial OF Satur-
doy IN regard TO the "Revenue Laws and Dis
tAlied Spirlts," but the facts stated are correct
from the beginning to the end OF the article.
The frauds that have been perpetrated on the
GOvernment in the dlstillation OF spirits have
Deen enormous. But that is not the worst of
A. Il has been the means of oorrupting and
SenOralizing a large portion of our commu-
Ditv. Men OF means and respectabillty. who
would not wish to be known as participants in
these frauds, are the actual owners of these dis
aIlleries They furnish the means and set some
unknown man up in the business, which Is
carried on in his name. They share the profits,
and they know those profits can only be OBJ
tanned by defrauding the Government.
AS you Justly say, there need be no fraud in
,his business, If the Government has competent
.na honest officials. The product Of the still
can be correctly estimated from the quantlty OF
Saaterial used and the quantity OF material can
he ascertained from the number OF gallons
tennd in each fermenting vat. Take what may
he called a small dlstillery, for example. IL has
Se Of twenty-five bushels fifty bushels, or one
hundred bushels capacity. In TINS tuO mesh
OF much less quantity than It's capacity cannot
he made to advantage. 1t takes six or seven
hours TO make the mash. small mash cannot
he made as easily in the tub as mash of the
tubs capacity. The same time, the same labor,
and the same quantity of fuel are required to
Snoke a small mash as a large one. II is not
nrohahle therefore, that a distiller would make
q mash of much less material than the capacity
F6r this one mash-tub the distillery must
have six or seven fermenttng vats Each vat
will hold one mash and IL Will not DO TO put
mash made one day in the same vat with a
mash made the day before mash must re-
main in the vat three or four days before the
beer is ready to run through the still. IL Is
known that the distiller uses a certain quantity
nj water for each bushel of grain, and as the
vats are all numbered, and the dimensions OF
them exactly taken, it is very easy matter
for the Assistant Assessor, who visits the dis
tillery daily, and measures the quantity OF the
tain with an approach to correctness the guam
tity of grain used in each mash, and conse-
Quently the number OF gallons OF whisky that
ought to come from the still.
The distiller is required by Lne law 10 make
an entry in his distillers book of the quantity
OF grain put into each mash. And II Is the
Assistant Assessors duty to make and report
to the Assessor every day the entry from the
book and the quantity of mash found in each
the Collector seizes the distillery, aud the
Assessor proceeds to make an assessment of
the tax on the whisky that ought TO be pro-
duced from the mash in the vats
All your recommendations are good, but most
of them are already provided for by the exist
ing laws and regulations. 1 especially agree
with you in your last proposition that 'all re.
strictions as 10 meters, cistern room, ETC., be
abolished" and that distilers be allowed to
draw off their whisky whenever they please.
1t Ia only necessary to know the quantity of
material in the vats, and the quantity of
whisky they return, to be able to assess them
for all they make. j.