The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-05-13

| turns 10 the commissioner OF lOLef0dl T0Ne-
| nue., and, since comparatively only small
quantities were sold to dealers in the city.
| the difference would show the amount OF
crooked whisky" To throw his own force
and others wholly off the track, he first di-
rected the records of shipments into st. Louis
for the year 1874 to be taken for several
leading classes of merchandise, in
cludipg, of course, whisky and high
wines, his copyists being instructed
TO miss nothing in the list Of articles fur
nished them. This formidable labor being
| accomplished, he then began the real work
| in hand, and his copyist transcribed every
dray or shipping ticket of merchandise sent
out of st. Louis during 1875, and thus with
out appearing to pay any attention 10
whisky, he had among the papers when the
| work was done perfect record oil every
package of spirits shipped, including the
name of the firm shipping, its date OF snip
| ment, point OF destination, numbers of the
pBcksge, kind of spirits, and name OF the
consignee, the originals all attested by the
| shipping clerks OF the vario1s firms. These
originals will now be
AVAILABLE as EVIDENCE IN THE COURTS
The character of the work was not discov-
cred in any quarter, and not even suspected
until it was all completed. AS the govern
ment keeps an account showing he amount
produced and shipped, and as it is necessary
that these shall always balance, in order to
make way with their Illicit production the
distillers must make purchases of the same
amount Of regular tax-paid whisky, gener-
ally from out of the city. This done, they
then send lot of hcit whisky 70 their
rectifiers, without stamps, and dumpit. They
then pretend to have taken the lot purchased
out OF town, with all stamps and numbers
right, TO the rectiiers, and to have dumped
that and this purchase, and dumping IS en-
tered on their books. The purchased lot Is
left in store until accumulations OF business
have obliterated clear traces of it, and then
it is sold. This is one of the boldest meth
ods of frauds. aud of course requires collu-
sion with revenue officers of various grades.
discovery OF transaction of 800 bar
rels by the firm of Bingham 81 Brothers, of
st. Louis, by Special Agent Yaryan, thus
purchased and stored, duplicated by dump
ing and finally shipped to New York, opened
his eyes to the system, and he went at once
to New York and communicated the case 20
Supervisor Hawley. The latter put hls
whole force at the disposition of YaryaD, and
in two days transcripts were procured from
dealers's books of all shipments for January,
February, and March of this year. These
transcripts we're brought here and the serial
numbers of each lot compared with the
dumping paper in the Office of internal rev
enue. This comparison developed the fact
that du plicate and even triplicate
LOTS HAD BEEN FREQUENTLY SHIPPED,
and that transactions were on tue boldest
and most extensive scale. This part OF the
examination showed that four-fiiths of all
liquor shipped from st. Louis to New York
were illicit For the three months exam
ined about 2,50O barrels of this fraudulent
whisky was shipped by three st. Louis
houses alone, namely: by Ulrici. Teuscher
and Bingham & Bros. The distillers apply
TO the collector and receive tax-paid stamps,
for wbicn they pay their full value. These
they place upon W hat would be called straight
goods, which sre taken to the Tectifylng
houses and dumped. So far the transaction
is honest. The rectifie after dumping, re-
moves the tax paid and the warehouse
stamps, and returns the same to the dis
tillers, the gGager certifying that ne mas
seen the same destroyed. These stamps are
then placed on fresh barrels filled with
| illicit goods and shipned to New York, or
some other point, and no entries made
upon their books of the transaction, the
only entry appearing being the first ship
ment TO the rectifyiDg house. They trust
| implicitly upon neglect, and the difhculty
/ of any comparison of the serial numbers.
Another plan by which duplicated numbers
are used is by filling fresh packages with
Illicit spirits, and having placed thereon
barrel stamp, and branding upon the bar
rel the serial numbers of original tax paid
stamps which have heretofore been referred
to as dumped and as shipped TO New York,
and thus using one serial number for three
| transactions.
| ANOTHER MODE OF SELLING ILLICIT GOODS
is TO send package having the rectifier's
stamps upon them to dealer, say in
Charleston, 5. c., and when the goods are
used TO have the same stamps returned, and
fresh packages filled and sent to the same
dealers, without any entries having been
hot, h<C n i
| practicable, the stamps, which are supposed
to be put on with q strong glue, are in real
ity prepared on the back so that they will
not stick, and are kept in place by small
ia removing them. The st. Louis
ring paid a regular price of about sl2
each for barrel stamps returned. Officers
In the districts to which said goods are
shipped have no means of detecting these
frauds. Goods upon their face appear
straight, and II they are selzeu, the case is
referred to 81. Louis revenue officers; and
if the records are'not so made up as to ex-
onerate the distillers and rectiiisrs, they
are amended by consent of the revenue Off
GERS in such way "a will clear the detected
parties. Another arrangement OF distlller
les is this: They have been provided with
facilities for emptying their mash and ii
licit spirits on hand at few moments no.
tice. to lie used only in case OF an uneX
: pected arrival of officers. They need bui
iifteen minutes notice to empty their mash
tubs and liquors into the sewers OF ST. Louis
which plan OF action has bsen necessitatet
only a few times, as they are generally no
, tifsd hours and days before of the time
, when the officers will arrive. Among The
boldest methods of all discovered were few
where certain lots OF spirits, tax paid, were
taken to a rectiier's and dumped and
THEN DIRECTLY BACK To THE DIsTILLERY
with the stamps intact, filled again, ana
dumped the second time within two days
The dumping papers of these two transsc
tions, with the same serial numbers on th,
, stamps and packages. were filed only TIVE
days apart in the collectors Office, and We
they were allowed to escape all officla
| examination. Some cases were found wber.
aa=L..i.. dI1 ned and than refilla