Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1893-08-04
NIoonshjne Whisky.

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mond Times says: "Your correspond
ent has been spending few days in the
mountains of Blue Ridge Virginia, the
home OF the moonshiner, and has made
thorough investigation of the way
this choice selection of liquid poison is
produced.
Perhaps among all the lovely and
picturesque regions that lie along the
Appalachian range Of mountains, from
the granite hills of New England to the
sunny slopes of Dixie, there is none
that contains more variedly charming
sites and scenes, in hill and dale, rug
ged glen and high mountain cliff, than
the section of country geographically
known as Blue Ridge Virginia, com
posed of the counties of Floyd, Carroll
and Grayson and parts of the coun-
ties of Franklin, Patrick and Mont
gomery.
While this lovely country in summer
is a paradise thereby hangs a tale. For
in many d vine-clad ravine turks a
strong evidence of will and aggravated
violation of the law, and in almost
every deep shaded valley, where
apparently the primeval silence
is only broken by the murmuring
stream as it leaps over its pebbled bed,
is almost hidden from human view q
rude shed where this concentrated eX-
tract of corn and crude cussedness
known as ''moonshine" or mountain
dew is made.
The material most commonly used
in the manufacture of this burning
burlesqne on Bacchus is Indian corn,
but when super fine article is desired
for home consumption of rye, in pro-
portion OF one bushel of rye to one Of
corn, is used. Then, on the other hand,
when the whisky is intended solely for
commercial purposes, other ingredients
are added, commonly the leaves and
bark of red-stemned ivy, tobacco stems
and the leaves of native shrub called
"stagger weed Hickory ashes are
also used to give it head. This is not
objected to by the constant consumers
of the home-brew,d d goods, who some
times add cayenne pepper to it to make
it less fiery.
The grain is ground into meal at the
country mill, and in order to avoid sus-
picion the grist is taken to the mill in
-bushcl bags on the back ofa horse
or steer, the distilers' son or some
other small boy generally making a
half.dozen trips daily, saying to a
curious person who might ask him that
he was having his corn chopped up to
feed the stock, when as matter of
fact his only stock consisted Of small
steer and Il mountain COW. neither of
whom ever tasted food stronger than
fodder. 1t would be considered a sacri-
ege, however, to doubt the word ofany
one engaged in the traffic.
The price Of corn in this region
ranges from GO cents 10 81 per bushel,
this being due to its manufacture into
whisky and not on account of the
amount grown, which is considerable.
One bushel of corn will make three gal
Ions of whisky and it is common trans
action for farmer to barter one bu>hel
of corn for gallon of whisky The
country merchants usually purchase in
the fail and winter large quantities of
corn in exchange for goods, and it is
quite common for the merchant to be a
silent partner with distiller, one
member of the firm furnishing the grain
while the other does the work. The
wagoners, who are considerable num-
Der of the bread-winners of this Coun
try, buy butter, eggs and general pro-
duce from the merchant and make out
the load" with several gallons of whis-
ky and sometimes brandy, usually in
small kegs or Jugs, sealed and tagged,
the tags beril G fictitious names. The
whisky is then sold at various towns
convenient to the wagoLers, Roar le,
Danville, Salem, Radford and Pulaski.
OF course the 6ealers in blockade whis-
ky are frequently apprehended in their
violations of u law and severely pun
ished, it gen, rally taking as much
money to get man out of q revenue
scrape" as he had made selling the con-
traband article. Yet there is strange
fascination in it. A man when once
engaged in the business seldom engages
in any other occupation.
A considerable quantity of apple
brandy is also made and sold in this
section. The distiller of brandy usual
" has some pretense of conducting a
legal business, as he takes out license
to manufacture and buys stamps for
about one-tenth of his product. The
nine-tenths contraband is sold to the
neighbors and orchard owners for furn-
ished fruit at 81 and $1.25 per gallon,
while the stamped brandy is shipped to
the wholesale liquor dealers in the
cities, where it is sold at about two
thirds of its cost, the entire profit being
on the blockade brandy.
The brandy distiller usually reports
to the government that he operated bis
place three or four days during the
month, being careful to place those
: days to corr oborate with that of the
United States gauger, who is supposed
to visit each tistillery every week OF
ten days.
The whisky distiller sometimes has
fllse taps on the hogsheads of malt, on
which are pa' ed apple pumace, so the
concern will ] ave the general appear
, ance of brandy distillery, while in re-
ality common corn whisky is being
turned out by the barrel.
Much more could be said of The
: strange ways of these fagrant violator!
of,he laws nd their methods Of distil
: Ing and sci ing that to the uninitiatet
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