The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-11-18
FIRST COUSIN TO BUTTER.
This Is tho Season When tho Dealers
in 0~leomargarine Begin to
Do Business.
How the Government Keeps q
Watch on Both Wholesaler
and Retailer.
Attempts to Evads III Law-Tirst Arrest
OF an Illicit Distilier In This
Revenue District.

This is the season when the dealer in
ol~eomargarine begins to do . good BUSH
ness. When the cold weather sets In his
trade commences, and IL continues till we'll
into the spring. 1t IL q fact not Generally
known that every dealer In oleomaraarine
must take out a government license. The
rate for retailers, or those selling in less
than ~ten-pound lots, ID "a q month, while
the wholesalers. pay $40 q month. The
licenses are usually taken out in October
or November. and must be paid for for the
balance Of the fiscal year. Eight months,
or till juno 80, 10 the usual time calculated
on, 30 it costs the retailers $32 and the
wholesalers $500 for the season. There
are in the internal revenue district
composed Of Montana, Idaho and Utah, of
which Capt. j. 8. Mills is the collector. ten
Wholesale and twenty-four retail dealers,
who have taken ont licenses 10 far this
year. The amount of oleomarRarine con-
sumed is very surprising to those not in the
business. As d rule it ia made out Of the
purest materials, only the cream portion is
omitted, and is used to a very great extent
by the restaurants and hotels in the various
mining Camps.
~ lowe kOvOAA AAk Abo AAulNAdCtOIo hn0
sale are equally as strict as those which ap-
ply to the manufacture and sale of liquor.
though some people appear to be ignorant
Of the fact. At the .'oleo" factories q
record is kept of every pound Of the pro-
duct, who sold to and when. A copy Of
this j. aent to the commissioners
sends to the collectors in each district
q statement showing to whom
in his district ol~eomargarine has bosn sent.
If in the list of those who have bought the
''oleo" appears the name of some one who
has not a license, an inspector immediately
goes after him. II the recipient ia found
to be q dealer, then there 10 SOM trouble.
If a private consumer, the governments has
nothing mors to do with it.
Various expedients are resorted to to
evade the law. Not long & a man bought
a lot OF "oleo' in the east and had 1t
shipped west as blankets or something Of
the sort. Then he began to soil it on the
quiet, and finally q Chinaman to whom he
had sold some told about it. An inspector
soon pounced down upon the seller, and ii
cost the latter q lot of cash. But if the
Chinaman had not told the fraud would
have been found out, because, while the
inspector was investigating the matter a
ing the nan had bought some ''oleo'' from
a certain eastern factory and shipped it to
Montana. 1
Oftsntimes attempts are made to evade
the law BY dealers declaring they are not
selling 'oleo." In cases of this kind the
inspectors take a sample Of the stuff and
test it with a microscope. If it is butter il
shows rather large curds, with rough edges;
if oleomargarine it is a mass OF globules.
II the dealer himself has been deceived and
can prove it, the results will not be serious
But ii he Is engaged in an attempt 10 de-
fraud the government no will have to pay
for a. license with 50 per cent. penalty
added, and then take his chances for crimi-
nal prosecution.
There is a man down in Idaho, near Boise
City, who probably wishes he had not at
tempted to cheat the government out of the
tax it exacts for every gallon of whisky
manufactured. This man was running an
Illicit distillery ten miles in the baokwooda
and making some three or four gallons OF
rye whisky daily. He bought his rye in
Spokane and had it shipped to himself in
the guise of horse feed. Az he kept a num-
her of teams no suspicion was aroused.
He had a. quarrel with some one
who knew his secret, and tho officials were
notified. When the inspector arrived at
the ''distillery" he found a very crude still,
but it answered all purposes. The moon
sinner had made a circular hole in the
ground a few feet in diameter, over which
he had placed q oopper-bottomed wash
ool!er. 1psteao OF 4 Tin top he had lifted
on it q boden one. Running from it was
q tin pipe, making various turns, but not
fitted with u worm. The output was not to
exceed four gallons a dav, and on each gal
Ion the manufacturer was saving ninety
cents. He is now in the Boise City peniten-
tiary and his trial takes place this month.
His enterprise will probably deprive him OF
works in a mysterious way. but like the
Helena excursionists he ia ''strictly in it,
The Idaho moonshiner is the first one who
has engaged in the business in the north
west.
Great bargain in trimmed hats on
Wednesday at Mrs. 3. A. Fishers so Main
street,