Lamoille newsdealer. [volume] (Hyde Park, Vt.) 1860-1877, 1873-07-23
$4,000 taE
Extensive Revenue Frauds.

dent that frauds upon the customs reNenn
Of the gOvernmeui, to a considerable ez
teat. were being perDotrs'sd by certain
parties living IN this vicinity, and variOu
MEASURES have from time to time been tax
en- TO unearth them and bring the guilty
parties TO punishment. These measures
have proved abOrtiye until within the past
few weeks.
These frauds, commencing several year;
aco in q small way, in the smuggling oil
LIQUORS BY various underground railroads,
have gradually eKleaie4 until they inelud'
cd the wholesale introduction into this
country from Canada Of ready made cloth.
ing, gentlemens' furnishing goods, cloths,
silks and dress goods Of nearly all descriP'
tic Is.
These facts in time came to the knowl-
edge Of Col. Frank 4. Howe, Government
agent at New York, who detailed James
Carter, a customs detective IN the govern.
nent service, to work up the case. Car
ter associated with himselfa Vermont vet
Gran in such matters, and both proceeded
at once /, Montreal, nominally for the
purpose Of buying horses, but, to all APP
pearances, with view to making some
money, honestly or dishonesty. Here
they fell in with parties who were engaged
in the business Of smuggling, with WHOM
they soou iugratiatod themselves, telling
tremendous stories of their success IN
smuggling. and receiving similar conf
dences from their newly made friends.
They found here that goods had been sold
by at least three firms to persons in the
United States, with the understanding
that they were to be delivered free OF du.
ty; and in one instance they saw a case
of ready made clothing duly marked to
certain parties in Springfield, Mass, and
ready for shipment. This was case in
point, and, learning that it was to be sent,
a pant of the way at least, by express,
they bid their Canadian friends a hasty
adieu, and proceeded at once to Spring.
field, where they waited for several days
before it came but at last it put in an
appearance, and was promptly seized.
By tracing this box back they found it
had been delivered to the express office in
this village, but the express agent here
was unable TO tell by whom it had been
delivered to him. Following this lead,
however, they Obtained information which
justified the arrest of Mark French, Of
this village, which arrest was effected on
Monday Of last week. On Tuesday, Mr..
French was arraigned before United States
Commissioner G. j. Gleason, waived an
examination, and, in default Of ball. was
committed to the Montpelier Jail, where
he has since remained.
This fact would have appeared in the
Montpelier papers Of last week, but for
the request Of the district attorney, Mr..
Field, that it might not, he fearing that
certain guilty parties, not yet apprehend-
ed, might be torewarned, and the ends Of
justice defeated by that means. The re-
suit shows that such fears were ground
less, as incorrect, sensational, and greatly
overestimated accounts Of the affair were
sent TO the city papers, and copied to some
extent by the papers Of this State.
1t appears that French and certain 9TH
er PARTIES in the states, have, in collision
with certain merchants in Canada, ofwhom
they purchased their goods, been in the
habit of running the dutiable articles men,
toned above, across the line. and dispos-
ing of them to merchants and others in
the states. So far as we are informed,
there are but three Canada houses, and
these in Montreal, implicated and as we
have before intimated, the amount Of these
transactions has been greatly overestima-
ted.
These goods have generally reached the
States by one and the same route. They
have come from Montreal by railroad to
Bolton, the second township from the line,
opposite to Troy. There they were re-
ceived and brought by team through the
town Of Potion to the south side Of the
line. by an obscure way, in the town of
Troy. The course from there has usually
been through the towns ofJay, Lowell md
Eden to Hydepark From there they
have been taken sometimes through Stowe
to Waterbury station, and others via.
Morristown, Elmore and Worcester to
Montpelier. The work of getting them
past the lines. it is said, has usually been
performed by resident of Bolton.
The arrangements for securing the safe
transit of the goods seem to have been am
pie, and the combination strong one.
Too much credit certainly cannot be given
to those officers who by their sagacity and
and industry have succeeded in exposing
and breaking up the business.
Subsequent to Mr.. French's arrest, a
search warrant was issued, and his CORES.
pondence, bills, receipts and account books
were seized. From these it appears that
he had been in the habit of keeping ''pret-
ty full book" and the disclosures PROM
Used when these shall be made public, as
they undoubtedly will be in time, are de-
cidedly rich. In the meantime ramon is
uncommonly busy with the names of men
who should be above the imputatlon of
: dealing in struggled goods, and we sincere
ly hope future Investigation will prove
them to have been SO.
1t is, perhaps, no more than fair, to
state that Mr.. Freach's counsel claim
that his connection with the smuggling
business has been small, so far as the
amount struggled is concerned or in
French's words--ie not done enough tc
hire train, or buy up an officer for hi,
own use.
Mr.. w. L. Washburn has not been ar