, 1870-03-19
WASHINGTON.
The Whiskey Ring.
Talk With On Independent Deteo-
tive.
The Frauds OF JoflnsonS Heve'
nuc Stuff.
Ixnon QUE OWN ooanKsRokpET.
WAsHnorus, March II.

nAme OF LAwrcnca MA1ln. In Apps&1 aAla Au
Was cross between John c. Calhoun and John
Brown; long locks Of iron-grey hair surround-
cd his ssturnino faoo, and under his low round
forehead pair Of skeptieA eyes looked out
unxistinsly. Martin looked to be si1 feet four
or five inches high, and it wAs doubtful to
know whether he was Catholic priest or
government detective. soon found that he
waa Mr. boutwell, special revenue investigator,
Who had undertaken to recover to the Treasury
the immense sums Of money lost between tho
Tenure ct Office tct and Andrew johnson,
amongnt the whiskey distlIe.s.
The whiskey business had never under
taken to investigate, although hAd heard for
three OF four years Of vhiskey rings, whiskey
frauds, and whiskey kings, so I improved tho
present opportunity to take tho frat lesson in
distillation and it's mysteries. The conyersa-
ton which cnsued may convey some idea to
your readers both Of revenue frauds and OF the
strange way In which people undertake to e1-
As hew nothing about Mr.. Martin, and
had never heard Of him as = goEernmont Off
Ger, began BY saying:
AAre you revenue detective Z"
"No, not exactly. I had beon studying up
whiskey frauds, and told Mr.: Boutwell,, who
iB an old friend Of mine, that believed that
dnrine the yea1n 1865. l867. I8s9." 80
"You eec." continued Mr. Mnrtin, Hthat
during thoeo years Of JQbnsou's adminiHtrs-
ton the revenue derived from whiskoy WAS
only about Sl5,0oo, 200 year, although hvc
times IS much whiskey *aa distilled then ~
cents gallon, was then e3 q gallon. Now,
the revenue from whiskey obtained during tho
first year Of G1ant'a administration has been
s72, doc, 900, and believe that 300, ,ooo, 600
can be recovered from tho dishllera and tho
defsulting revenue officials At ciEl suit: Ny
where am confident that can recover
$50, 600 Geo."
"What WAS tho nature qf those frauds Z"
ait is my belief that IN nine-tanths OF the
cases tho government officials were the cor
rupters OF tho disduerr. Those corrupt ot1l-
ciala escaped summary expulsion By the opera
uonS Of tho Tenure -of-Odice Law, for, even
when johnson Was willing to turn out per-
jured Collector Of Assessor, that willingness
Was interpreted by tho Senate to be political
prejudice and the zaecA always kept his placc
The distillers h1so Almoat invariably admitted
to me that they would haze made more money.
With lesB rear and tear OF conscience, hid
they paid the whole ta1 and traded on the
square"
"E1plain how tho frauds were committed
swell, the act of fraud was generally per-
petrated in this manner: The Law compcls
every distillery to have two receiving tubs,
into which the hi8hwincs or whiekey Is r11n,
and no liquor ia to be run into those tubs after
dark. Tie revenue officer is supposed to como
to the distillery and watch the whiskey drawn
drawn from the tubs Into barrels, II which
time he takes note Of the nunnber Of gallons,
and collects the tax. I have found dis
tl1eries Of the largest capacity to return
fifteen or twenty barrels 4 day,
whereas = thousand, fifteen hundred or two
Thousand barrels Was probably the actual guam
tity manufactured. The fraud was, Of course,
pelpehated By collusiou with the revenue Off
GERS, and in this way: An Underground pipe
extended ffom the bottom Of the receiving
tubs to i neighboring building rented By the
disti1ler and called roctifEing room. II the
underground pipc was suspected OF found I
roof above, and hose or pipe dropped int
the wMskey, which was then pumped by
hand pump or steam engine into tho rectify
ing room, Fhero it was secretly bazreled
Now. 70 come to that part Of the fraud BY
which It vas made next TO Impossible to trace
Of. The dist1llor would 60 to = wnskey dealer
Or speenlator and conclude mock purchase
from him Of, SAY, two thousand barrels OF
whsley. When the Illegal whiskoy from the
lectifying room vas sold and shipped,
therefore, The dietiller.s books showed that
l t1A$AA@As~N* <A4NAA2<eAASA
crude whiekey OF certain party, and Eectihod
IT merely Wt4io detective, tracing up ssiss
WhiRkey, would find the books of the pseudo
seller to correspond With those OF the distalleE
everything, therefore seemed to bo fair and
square, md tho dstecti1es we're battled; But
am able to ehor, even where cannot prove
4 duch I sale to hAvo been a false one, that the
| government has right to damages because, tt
| almost eyery csse, this mock sale is marked
down At p.ice below the ta1, and this Of it,
dcnco Of evasion"
"But, MI. Martin, we're thero not door
NCeItainlv but thay. iIa the oaurera. ane
| all tha rest M Ia CniIactora. wcrn mi nncr
e.Isry md fannd it esmren}ent 10 hin sFa,
&.hrnaveT nac~s*sr an, nTrz,sr.d r, strn1
th,t =, ,n,,c}, ~ ali mn a xeak xss nsid fo,
nnrtL. .r,d -,oo.fss r. s,,,,a s;1a1a i, {1l"r;ss
| .C5 f-o,,, +b.+ dou1, * aim ec9 ANN vronL
"a hlacI1nx;l. In 1nsny essas t1,e irst instsil
tncnts ~ thsaa enormous s1hsi9ffes g.rrn mn
Is rs flat blscImsu. Let mo glye 1uu IN s1am An
m 4 disfiIicr- IN ma case With invest;
rpstsi v.s y nn,t+ar.ot.S,ct Gennsn whn "a,
| ncnts1iv irc.nsIJa nj kear,inr h}mse1f in
! fo-nnd nnn,, tfo ;n+r;c,tc sFatom ~ lava ~
| fcct;nr III ,I;sti11eyies wh;ch 1Tnrc corst.ntI,
bsiuc nmnnlcd rcnained or rencaled bv cnn
cTrss. The charnctcr nf 1ecislsfinn n,1on iii
s,,l,fcrt ia n ;tsaif an.re sni . n;tf.f1 n th.
siuple msn. VOL. noy old Gerrnan distillcr
Ennwinc 1itt1e ~ aoTno nc1x I'M, in the 1.v
vas w.!sed nnon ons os DIV " hr n.1.nns ~ nff;cs7
Who told hi,n tbaf hc uss onarstsnt, ;itecr1iy
and that his place must bc forthwith closa up
"Why.' says nv siuple-mindodrna tIhh,
you close me- m now yon vii min me. Her
have stored aFev N fmmeueo uunntty q
! grain and othax mate1ial Ia there no vAy o
avoiding this seizure?'
"I don't know ears tho revenue man, du
Eiuuslr. Il hxro only one aet Of orders. Bu
| y. :.
SEQ the Collector. I won't close you up to
dav,'
1.-The next day back back comes tho revenu
man, with serious face, and s1yn:
"'Na have talked this matter over 1t the o1
fec. and no don't want to shut you up. "
think hat YOU are a good man. and thst 80
mean to do right am instructed to cay ths
| $4,000 will fl this matter for the present.
'sThe disti1ler seos no way Of escape. Tim
is precious to him. So he gives his check fo
fvc thousand dollars drawn to cash Thu
no going back, because the Gistilier's offense
A SntaR Prisnn nne- At l,at. weary Of theH
repeated ex.ctiona be sRrees with the reyenu
nff;ee tn nav n fiIe{i ealsT avery Week.
WTaka auother case, A rnan has nut IN
distiijery h finds The t.x IN .h;sEer ia Il,
do1l. ~ g.1fon nd Eat +hst ba csn Inv n ;
he msrket for dollsS md - ousTtar. 20 i
<.noa ~ tha Co,lac+nr N' "
ste r1 he sass ana ar propose Aaou so 20 81 iai 4
tho market rstes, / do not SEQ how I can NAL
anything
s1aTe1s IA s9a .a Collector, {o1 70 I'm m9
mo1row, who viii tall You how to act
The next dsyy ; nan goes down snd | d i
bauehes the dishller With statement o. T. 40
others do. Thus mighty network OF villain
covers the whole trade. me disnlle's ees
nnI- 4