New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-08-19
SUPPOSED SMUGGLED GOODS.
Seizure of Sugar and Molasses.

Yesterday afternoon, Captain S. 3. More
house, special agent of the United States
customs, made seizure of goods in transitu
from Weeks Island to New Orleans, under
strong suspicion that they were contraband
The goods seized consisted of eight hogs
heads sugar, thirty barrels molasses and
six barrels :'bottoms" (the latter being the
under draining of sugar..
The goods seized, there are good grounds
to believe, are part of what was landed at
Weeks Island, few weeks ago, from the
schooner Lily Weeks, which vessel was
seized some ten or fifteen days since by
the revenue authorities.
Weeks Island is in Vermilion Bay, about
one hundred and forty miles from New Or
leans, and has for a long time been under
surveillance of the customs authorities, and
the object of special attention Of Captain
Morehouse, who, in his frequent visits to
that neighborhood, has gained much valu-
able and accurate information.
Sugar has been cultivated to a compare
lively small extent on Weeks sIsland, but it
has been ascertained that to every hogs
head of sugar grown on the island there
are at least three hogsheads shipped from
it. The smuggling schooner having been
seized, there was good reason to believe
that goods concealed on the island
would shortly find their way to
market. Captain Morehouse, who had
made arrangements to obtain speedy infor-
nation of whatever transpired i'll the neigh
borhood of Weeks Island, received intelli-
gence that Mr.. Weeks, the proprietor of the
island, had chartered the steamer Pelican
State to carry sugar and molasses from
that island to Brashear City. 1t has been
generally the custom to ship to Franklin or
New iberia, and this deviation alone, for
several reasons, was a strong cause for sus-
picion. Taking proper measures to ascer-
tain the time of their arrival, Captain More
house learned yesterday that the goods had
come. He at once proceeded to the depot
| of Morgan's railroad ON the right bank,
| and there found goods, sugar, mo-
| lasses and bottoms loaded up to be trans
ported to the city on the Morgan freight
steamer Lucretia, Captain Morehouse
crossed the river with the smuggled goods,
and when they had landed fairly on this
side, he took the liberty to seat himself be-
side the driver of the leading vehicle, and
blandly request him to drive to the Gus
tomhouse There the goods are lodged un-
der the charge of the superintendent of
bonded warehouses to await the investiga-
ton of the revenue authorities. The trick
of shipping the smuggled goods to Brashear
City for the purpose of railrOading them TO
New Orleans was very acute, out the
United States can afford to pay for shreWd-
| ness equal, if not superior, to the acuteness
of the smuggling fraternity, as the seizure
has shown. .
If the seizure should hold good on inves-
| tigation, and it is certain that the govern
ment authorities will probe it to the bottom,
| it will doubtless be the means OF bringing
to light series of transactions long sus.
pected, but so far eludlng detection; and
firm will be in a position by no means en-
| yiable. Further developments will be
made known as they transpire.