The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-01-09
THE OPIUM RING.
Another Alleged Member
!. -. Now in the Jail.
A DOCTOR THE INF0RMER.
Miller Was One of the Crew of
the Emerald.
TWO OTHER ARRESTS MADE.
=
MiIIer's Alleged Confession Said to
=. ImpIicate Certain Officers in
the Customs Service.


Fhe warrant was issued upon the affidavit
OF DIR. Stephen a. d. Young who resides
al lao Eleventh street. The customs Off
GERS are as secretiVe about the arrest and
. the details OF the capture of Miller as were
eyer the "Old Sleuths" in a yellow backed
novel. They know nothing, would know
nothing if they could know, wouldn't tell
II, and for all this there is a reason, in fact.
50 TWO reasons.
Some months ago two Seameu on the
: schooner Emerald were arrested in Sacra-
mento for having in their possession I'M
stamped opium, manufactured in Vic
~torla, British Columbia. There is no law
TO punish person for having unstamped
opium in his possession unless it can be
proved that the person smuggled the drug.
aud tor day or two the authorities held
,Noss and Svenson under r process which
any United States court would have dis
solved at a moments notice and given the
me0 their liberty.
= But the men were brought here and
arraigned on the charge of smuggling in
order to hold them, although at the time
the Government had little or no proof be-
yond circumstances connecting the men
with suspicious acts and a suspicious
vessel on which to base its case. AS a
result, after a preliminary examination
before Commissioner Heacock, the sailors
were released on $500 cash bail each. This
bail was forfeited by the men, who fed to
British Columbia.
The act of foTfeting their bail when the
governments case against them was so
slight naturally satisfied the customs
of1cers of the guilt of the two sailors, who,
not knowing the extent and nature of the
information in possession of the Govern
ment fled and forfeited $1,000 when by
staying here and standing trial they stood
81 good chance of being acquitted and
g saving their money. II was at once argued
that some one besides VOss and SyepsOn
had put up the bail money and had for
1eited 1t rather than take the chances of
the Two men, probably innocent eXcept
being used as tools, standing trial, for fear
that upon their examination facts would
be developed that might lead to the arrest
of the persons really guilty.
There is no doubt of this because mill
the Internal Revenue Collector a Sacra-
mentO, who arrested VOsS and Svenson.
telegrapned that fact here not man in the
customs service had ever connected them
With smuggling, and il was not until after
the sailors had given ball and fed that
any 1actS were secured by the special
agents or Inspector of the customs service
connecting them with smuggling
But when ii was too late a report was
made TO Collector Wise showing that the
men"weTe members or employees of the great
that they were part of the crew of
the schooner Emerald. which crept in
through the Golden Gate last September
and landed along the shore Of the bay and
rivers between this port and Red Bluff
more than three tons Of opium and a
score of Chinese who had no right to land.
Part Of the opium landed was seized ir
:: this citv. part in Sacramento, and small
consguments elsewhere. The bulk Of
1900 pounds of opium. worth over $4,000,
seized and known to have been landed hy
p. the Emerald, was without claimant or
infGrmer. and the informer, if he be other
than a customs officer, gets one-halt the
value of the seizure when it is condemned
and sold.
The special agents began working to
trace up the rest Of the opium ring in this
d. city to which NOss and SvenSOn either
belonged or by which they were employed.
and something over fortnight ago thew
received anew cleW which led to the arrest
Of Miller.
. The information came in the shape of
letter from Dr. Stephen A. D. Young to
the United States District Attorney. in
which he stated that Miller, who is only
. about % or % years old, bad made a con
fesslOn IN which he admitted that as cabin
boy on one OF the ships engaged by the
: NlctOrla-P0rtland-Sea opium ring he
had become member Of the combination
and with ' oss and SVensOn had helped
lard the 1900 pounds of opium and the
thirteen Chinese that were brought here
by the Emerald. The letter incidentally
charged two Of the highest officials now in
the customs service in this city with being
interested In the smuggling operations.
- Inc letter was at once sent to Collector
wise and by him turned over to the officers
Tor Investigation. They investigated and
Miller was arrested, with DR.. Stephen A.
IL. Young as the nformer.
II young Miller's story be trnp and II is
snbstantiated by friends of his family.
which Is eminently respectable, there ia
Quite story as To DR.. Y0ung's connection
with the affair. 1t is alleged thatyoung
Miller was several years ago placed in the
position OF clerk in law office here to
LEARN the business" He got in with a
wild crowd and began drinking so hard
that his employers were compelled to dis
charge him. His relatives then sent him
to sea in order to cure him Of his love for
drink, and while in Victoria or Portland
he fell in with the opium ring On his
return to this port on the Emerald in
September ne left the ship and returned
to this city we'll supplied with money. He
at once began carOusing and in time Dr.
Young, who was the physician of Miller's
family was called to attend him, and
while acting as his physician Young re-
ceived the confession from Miller that led
to his arrest.
Two other important prisoners were
taken to the County Jail al $50 o'clock
last evening by Deputy United States
Marshals Monkton and MahoDey. They
were George II. j .Wichman of the firm
of Wichman Bros. wholesale and retail
confectioners at 754 Market street, 56
Third street and $50 Geary street. and
Leon Greenwald, about 81 years of age,
living at Post and Taylor streets. The
two men were arrested on separate war
rants issued by United States Commits
sioner E. II. Heacnck The charges
against the men are IDENTICAL, and set
forth that on August Is and October
last they imported and brought in to the
port of San Francisco 1000 pounds of pre-
pared opium and 1900 pounds of prepared
opium. and unlawiullY aided and abet-
ted the landing from the vessel Emerald of
thirteen Chinese laborers not entitled to
: land, and also thirteen other Chinese per-
sons not entitled to land
Wichman was arrested about 4 o'clock
at his Market-sJreet store by Deputy Mar
shall Monkt0n, and Greenwald was taken
into custody ON Suffer street as he was on
his way home by Marshal Mahoney.
They were placed in the County Jail
and instructions were left that no one
should be allowed to see either of them