The democrat. [volume] (Weston, W. Va.) 1868-1874, 1874-05-04
JOHN SHORT, D1sr1LLER.
Tho story of a Nan who Got up IA DIstiI,
lery within Prisons WalIs-A-A Mar
who Ought to be Able TO Make Re.
Spectacle Living. Lid

who Ought TO be Able TO Make o Re-
spectacle Liying.
John Short, the Sing Sing convict
who made reputation by establishing
q distillery inside the prison.walls, is
out, and tells how he carried on his
business. We're the ofEense less seri-
Gus one there would be found much
that is comical about ii. John says:
"Idraw'd the plans for my still; ;'being
q practical distiller I know'd Just what
I wanted. The things was all made
outside the prison, from my plans, and
fetched in for me. It was a good deal
Of bother, though, for the worm was
made wrong first, and II had TO be sent
back. This was in 1869, and I'd been
there about year on an eight-year sen.
tence. Warden Nelson was boss then,
and I was o good deal scared Of him.
The boys all said hewas mighty severe,
and / know'd II he got hold OF me I'd
suffer for II. ] was what they call cap.
tain Of the hall-had charge Of giving
out the blankets, ran. errands, and SO
on. That gave me kind Of lee-way,
sir, and Iwasn't watched so close rs
the other convicts. I had q cell next to
me that was used for storing things,
aud was pretty full Of rubbish. I had
charge Of IL, and nobody else went in
scarcely ever. Iliton that cell right
away as the place for my still, and /
got II aIed up without anybody's know
ing II rs hadn't ought 10. The stillwas
o little thing, bat 1t would turn out
from eight 10 ten quarts o day Of first
class stuff. Being In and out when in
the way Of doing my duty, I could look
after IL without being caught. i used
to run ~ nights, too, sometimes, in my
own cell. You see, str, tlie guards
thought II there wasn't q light in the
cell everything was all right; SO all ]
had 10 dowas TO keep everything shady.
/ worked mighty hard, and didn't sleep
more'n three or four hours night
sometimes for o week. Pretty soon ]
got SO pale and wore out that they was
going TO send me TO the hospital. So ]
had 70 let up on IL little.
"Could I make good whisky (? Well,
sir, / wish I had some Of IL here for you
TO try. The talk about my using potato
peelings, stale bread, and such stuff is
lies. Every drop Of whisky / made was
out OF good barley that 1 got-I know
how-from outside. The conyicts said
it was prime, and they was as good
Judges as you could come across any
where. They didn't know where my
still was, most Of 'em, but they bought
the whisky and paid cash for II. Oh, I
tell you, sir, Sing Sings the best place
in the world 10 run IN illicit distillery.
No collectors prying round, and no
competition. Ibottled II, and got gen.
orally a dollar o bottle-about o pint.
When Iwas running the still night and
day, the profit was about SlS or $40
every twenty.four hours. Igot on the
best kind for fourteen months, and then
Warden Nelson got o kind Of suspicion
that something was going on. Some Of
the conyicts got drunk on my whisky,
and the Warden know'd they was being
supplied with the stuff. I don't believe
he Thought IL was being made right
slap inside Of the prison. He nosed
round to catch some OF the keepers
fetching IL in. Them as knowd about
my distillery scared me by saying Mel.
son was pretty severe in his discipline.
Well, sir, Iheld off awhile, but / had
too good q thing not TO get at II again.
When Nelson had got hunting for
somebody that was fetching whisky in,
and Of course didn't find 'em, Il all
blowed over. The storage cell wasn't
searched OF oil, and after shiyering for
o month or so, I got my still going
again. You see, sir, the demand was
big-morne'n / could supply but l
couldn't enlarge, because the still was
as large as could be run without being
dead certain Of being found out. Some
times the smell from the mash was
pretty strong, and there was danger,
too, that some jealous convict would
find out where twas and blow on II.
The barley was brought int me in
bags, and cost me more'n the regular
price in the market, but in spite Of that
the profits was sometimes ns much as
eighteen or twenty dollars day. 1
give my wife some Of the money on the
sly, and the rest ] hid in the prison.
"Well, sir, things went on q swim.
ming till 1872 February, I guess twas
when j was bust up. Twas this way
1t happened: The conyicts amt sup
posed 70 have any money. They earn
o good deal, the smart ones do, on their
overtime work, but the Warden keeps
every cent. They can leave II on de-
post or have IL turned over TO their
relatives outside. Well, o wife or o
brother or somebody that'll pass for q
relation comes in, and the convict goes
to the Warden and asks TO have his
money turned over 10 this friend. The
warden thinks it's all straight and hands
IL over without suspicioning nothing.
Then ips easy enough for the friend to
slip II over on the quiet to the convict.
That was how my customers got
money, and ] got cash for my whisky.
Well, sir, one day o convict bought o
bottle ofthe stuff and gave me twenty
dollar bill to pay forit. While I was
making change in the hall o convict
saw what was going on. He wasn't o
customer himself, and he thought he
could get o point for fayors from Mel.
son by blowing on me. He did IL, and
/ was gone. That night Nelson and o
body guard that he had came o march,
ing down the hall and stopped plump
against my cell. is this John Shorts
cell 2 he says. Yes, sir, says ], and l
know'd something was up serious. He
shifted through my grating, sir, and
SAWS he. Seems to me. John. there's q
nell Of whisky round here. He had
the door opened, and says he, John,
you've got considerable money about
you. Give II to me.' put my hand
In my pocket, and pulled out 9 purse
that had eight or ten dollars in It. Then