Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1875-06-16
CROOKED wHIsKEY IN wISCoN.
SIN
Thc Seat OF Gen. II cdlrfck's OperAr ion
for Two Months Past

The Seat OF Gen. II cdlrfck's Operations
for Two Months Past.
For near two months last past pretty
near the whole revenue force of this
State have been engaged in unravelling
the ways of crooked whisky at Mil
waukee, Wisconsin, The Chicago
Times of the 18th inst, contained
lengthy account of the proceedings OF
Gen. Hedrick and his assistants, which
we are assured is quite accurate. From
this account we make the following
copious extracts. The Times says:
The revenue officers and govern
ment agents who had in charge this
district of Milwaukee have had hard
fight of 1t. They have been opposed
and obstructed at every step. They
have been met with deceit and VIC
lence and trickery. They have been
maligaed and misrepresented by the
press of this city. They have been
circumvented by subsidized attorneys.
They have been impeded by corrupt
officials and, in short, have had to cut
down many gnarled oaks in the forest
of difficulty to achieve success.
They are now resting comfortably
on their oars, having accumulated
enough evidence, as they believe, to
convince any honest court and jury
beyond any doubt of the frauds which
have been practiced. They have seized
six distilleries, and seven large recti-
flying establishments here, and have
laid their hands on
ILLICIT WHISKY
all over the country from New York
to Salt Lake City. Hundreds of thou
sands of dollars worth of property
has been seized by these gentlemen.
with every probability of AN ultimate
confscati0n by the government. The
frauds nnearthed here, upon the rev.
enue service, are the most palpable,
the most open and shameless that have
ever been known in this country.
A prominent official informed your
correspondent to-day that on the oc-
casion of q recent visit to Washing
ton, he had been
SENT FOR BY THE PRESIDENT,
with whom he conversed for several
hours. This was before the seizures
were made. His excellency appeared
very deeply interested in this matter
and took copious notes and memoran-
da during the interview. Tho official
appeared to think there was NO donbt
that the President initiated the raid
and was supporting it with all the
zeal and energy he was capable. The
government officers of this district
were n OF to be relied on. Col. j. M.
Hedrick, supervisor of internal rev.
cnue of Iowa, was directed to como to
this district and conduct the inyestiga-
tons. Tho colonel came upon the
ground and reconnoitered. He com.
menced collecting evidence, snd when
the suspicious moment arrived he WAS
ready to strike. He made no move
ment in the dark. He was well in
formed as to what was required. He
made no seizures where he had not
previously obtained what he believed
to be
CONCLUSIVE EVIDENCE OF FRAUD.
Neither the local officers or Mr..
Mum were informed of the contem-
plated descent of the cohorts of Bris.
tow. 1t was feared that they were 30
much in collision with the whisky in.
tluence that any information conveyed
to them would be divulged, and the
effort of the government to detect the
rogues thus frustrated. Subsequent
Developments have shown that this
concealment was wise. II appears
that large number of the revenue
officers not only knew of the frauds but
participated in them. In the district
of Milwaukee all the storekeepers and
gaugers have been removed, except
one. There was one good man found
in S0dOm. There was one honest qua.
ger found in Milwaukee. II is intima-
ted that even this one guager is not
above reproach. His official character
it is said, is not entirely stainless. But
his moderate deliDquencies, compared
with the iniquities of his more mercen-
AIRY brethren, have made his character
appear so saint.lika that he was allow
ed to keep his place, probably for the
same reason that choice specimen 10
priced at an anatomical museum--on
account of it's abnormal developments.
The seizures were made on May 10
and ii, and caused great panic
among the whisky men, who appear
to have been taken by surprise. they
had became 80 strong that they fancied
they never would be molested. They
were making wagon-lo Of money,
while the common herd were plod-
ding along YEARLY on the dusty road
to wealth. They rewarded their friends
literally and defied the lsw. They
ware auddanlv afrirknp dnvuu e, %hn