Smyrna times., 1889-07-24
BETRAYING FRIENDS.

1t is estimated that i'll this manner the
government pays out the sum of 100000
a year.
BETRAYING FRIENDS.
In some cases the special deputy Off
GERS employed in the custom house are
given a percentage of the seizures which
they make, and this is the principal rea-
son for their vigilance toward incoming
passengers, which has in many cases
been very offensive.
The stewards and stewardesses of near
ly all the big steamships are among the
most active informers. and they fre-
quently make q lot Of money through it.
''They have not the slightest cOmpunc-
ton in betraying their best friends, said
q special agent. "They make a practice
of findhlg out which of the passengers
have diamonds, or silks and satins, or
other valuable articles that they hope to
smuggle through, and to these they init
mate that smuggling is the easiest thing
in the world. As soon as the vessel ar
rives the infOrmer rushes to a special
agent with the information, and the
would be smuggler loses his or her goods
as q result of listening to the talk of the
tempter. There is not a trip made by
oneof the greatsteamships when this does
not occur. An exception was noted the
other day when the stewardess of one Of
the French line vessels was herself caught
smuggling, and goods valued at $1,000
were taken from her"
Milliners and tailors do not hesitate 60
turn informers in order to get rival
into trouble, although they do not often
ask for a share Of the reward.
eve often receive cable from Paris
reading: Look out for milliner Miss
Smith on Etruria,' said the special
agent, cor some similar wording. The
cable is sent by some rival milliner who
knows that Miss Smith is to sail on the
Etruria, and that the chances are ten to
one that she will cndeavor to smugglo in
trunkful of gewgaws with which to
ornament her stock of headgear. Poor
Miss Smith seldom learns how the Gus
| toms officers learned of her attempt,
while her stealthy rival probably comes
in on the following steamer and escapes
through the lines without suspicion being
attached to her"
American tailOrs and cloth importers
who visit England for goods are inveter-
ate informers upon their rivals in busi-
ness, and most Of the tips upon which
| the special agents act are cabled across
by some anonymous sender who does not
care for the reward, but who wants to
get rival into the meshes of the custom
house.
Jewellers stick together better than
| any other class Of men who smuggle, "
said a customs official yesterday. 1T is
rare indeed that one jeweler will inform
upon another, and when one is caught
smuggling the others flock around him
in sympathy, and sometimes combine to
make good his losses"
There are several professional inform
ers who make it their business to travel
almost constantly on the ocean steamers,
where they lure amateur smugglers into
their net
These men are well dressed and pose
as business or professional men who
have been abroad on a vacation.
On the voyage from Liverpool one of
them makes himself agreeable to the
men on board, and as the steamer nears
New York he boasts of his ability to
smuggle anything through the custom
house, from a diamond pin to an Gle
phant.
81 always do it" he exclaims, con-
iidently. Il never make a European
trip without bringing back several hun
drcd dollars worth Of goods free of
duty"
Then he urges his friends to mako the
attempt also, and one or two ut least
always do 50.
Of course they are caught, while the
/ gentlemanly informer makes the price
of his passage and considerable spending
money as the result of his work.
Such informers are well known to the
custom house people, who designate
them as ''ocean buncO steerers."
No attempt is made by the STEAMSHIP
authorities to prevent the work of thC
informers, some Of whom pick out a
good steamer upon which to employ
their talents, and practically live fol
years upon it.-New York Journal.