The Portland daily press., 1880-05-17
The Moonshiners,
Mr.. Reeds Remarks Thursday.

The Legislative, Executive, and judicial
Appropriation bill came up in the House
Thursday and debate arose upon the section :
appropriating money for the detection and
punishment of persons guilty OF violating the
internal revenue laws, the Southern members
complaining of the methods pursued for the
suppression of Illicit whiskey stills. Mr.. Reed
of Maine secured the floor and spoke as fol-
lows:
Mr.. Chairman: it seems to me that it is in
vain for gentlemen to attempt to cover up the
issue which is before us. This is a question
whether we will enforce our laws and collect
the revenues as heretofore, and nothing
else One gentleman on the other side of the
House has declared that this can be done with
out officers, and that it can be done by public
sentiment!
On the 10th day of February member from
Georgia introduced into this House a resolu-
ton calling for facts connected with this sub
ject. Since that resolution has been answered
have heard no allusion to it by gentlemen on
the other side. That statement of facts shows
that during the last three and a half years, in a
few States of this country, three thousand and
forty three Illicit stills have been discovered
and sixty-one hundred and ffty-three crimi-
nails or persons accused OF crimes against the
revenue have been arrested. Now il that Is
the state of public sentiment in that part of
the country, and it allows such an enormous
number of Illicit stills and encourages such an
enormous number of perpetrators of crime, l
wonder how much we are going to be benefited
by such condition of public sentiment"
But that exhibit is the least alarming feat
ure. One would suppose that with such an ex-
hibit as that staring them in the face the Rep
resentatives of such respectable communities
on this floor would hang their heads in shame;
but instead of that they come here and actual
ly force the fighting! They actually come
here and endeavor to force a reduction of ap-
preparations to detect crime, these men who
represent such districts! They undertake to
assail the officers of the law aud prevent them
from getting their pay for enforcing the stat
utes of the United States in relation to the COL
lection of the revenues.
For my own part want the country and
want the House to understand who is doing it,
want the country to take note of the men
who present this thing and press it for consid-
Grafton in this House.
This rigorous enforcement of the law that
gentlemen are so anxious to have mitigated
has shown itself in the largely increased rese-
nues of the country. Three years ago, for the
first six months of the year the amount of rev.
enue collected was only S442, ,562. GA; for the
first six months of the current fiscal year the
amount collected is over SS06, ,550.32. This re-
port shows clearly what has been accomplished
by rigorous and exact enforcement OF the laws
But this has been achieved by no harsh and
unrelenting treatment of men detected violat-
ing the law. On the contrary, on one page of
the report you will ind that twenty-five nun
dred and six of the individuals who have been
arrested for that crime have been amnestied by
the Government and this notwithstanding
twenty-five men have been killed and
forty-nine men have been wounded-all
officers in the performance of their duty; and
notwithstanding one hundred and twenty
five of these officers have been arrested by the
State authorities because they were doing their
duty, while only one man has been prosecuted
for these murders and woundings. If that is
the kind of public sentiment that is to enforce
this law, think we ought to increase the ap-
n1onriation instead of diminishing it