Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-06-16
IN HOTEL CORRIDORS.

''workmen were engaged In pairing on
the side Of Q four-story brick house when l
left home" said E J. Armstrong Of San
Francisco at the Riggs House. Two men
named Law built an apartment house on
Van Ness avenue about two years ago. and
recently IL was discovered that the building
sncroachsd three-Quarters OF an inch on the
lot adjoining 1t, which was owned by a man
named Evans. The latter went to see the
Laws about the matter. and a surveyor was
called In, who determined the exact difnsn1'
sious Of the trsspass. The Evans lot Nax.
worth about 800 front foot, SO the Laws
sought to settle the point at issue by offer
ing to pay him 800 per inch for the land
belonging to him that their building stood
on. Evans wanted $3.50 an inch, and the
Laws swore they would take their building
on his property before they would pay such
. sum- Next day, after this final negotia-
the Elba-thats the name of the building
and men began to chisel three-quarters of
IN inch on the brick wall next to Evans
sot- OF course the noise is tough on the
snants. but discomfort Is nothing when
priacipls IL at stake. and they grin and
bear it"
People who are more or less familiar with
the operations Of opium smusglers who car
~ on the illegal traffic in the Puget sound
apt to smile at the widely announced and
much-diseussed trip which Assistant Sec
rotary Hamlin proposes to take in order to
md out the best means OF preventing the
smugglers from continuing their business.
said Frank II. Wright Of Seattle at the Eb-
bitt House last night. "'W hiie 1t would be
dlmcult TO prove the assertion, ii Is never
teeless well understood out in my section
tnat some Of the most prominent men in
the Tar northwestern region are interested
In bringing opium into the United States
without the knowledge of the custom house
inspectors. There have been frequent cap
lures of individual smugglers. and their ar
rests. indeed. are matters Of almost weekly
occurrence; and now and then small band
OF men engaged together in the business
are discovered and brought to account. The
recent arrests in Portland that were her
aided in the east as the means of breaking
up the great smuggling ring of the north
west merely had the effect of taking very
little combination out OF the business. The
nave never been caught and they are too
powerful, In my opinion, to ever allow them
selves to be brought within the clutches Of
the law Mr. Hamlin will probably be en-
tertained at clubs and at private residences
during mis- visit to Washington and Oregon
by men OF apparently high standing in their
communities, who will give the assistant
secretary the best time he ever had in his
life and pay the expense for Ii out of their
share Of the profits they receive from the
proceeds OF the struggled opium. The fact
Is that the people UP on the Canadian bor-
der do not possess anything but rather
hazy conception OF the wrong OF smuggling
Struggled clothes are worn with a feeling
or superior pride. and 1t is not unusual to
hear citizens congratula ting each other on
the shrswd way in which they got this or
that article over the British Columbia line
without having to pay duty IL. This
sentiment serves as a great protection for
the opium smugglers. the majority OF
people WHO know that dope Is being brought
in without passing a custom Inspectors ex-
ard fha
who brings IL in as very commendable 1
am sure MIR. Hamlin will have a very de-
hghtful trip and meet some of the incest
people In the world and see the finest re-
gion on the top of the mundane sphere but
the chances are that he will come back
knowing Just about as much about the op-
eratlons or the big opium smugglers and
the manner in which they manage to elude
detection as he does now. One of the
shrewdest operations in the way of smug-
cling that ever knew Of" continued Mr..
wright, was four years ago this summer,
when the town of Sumas was established
In Washington at the British Columbia
line. The town was eleven miles from Mis-
sion, which Is on the Frazer river. where
the Canadian Pacific railroad has a bridge
across that stream. A branch line was run
from Mission to Sumas, and there met the
Seattle. Lake Shore and Northern railroad
Ten days after the junction of these roads
was effected Sumas was a tent town of
fourteen or fifteen hundred people, built up
on potn sides OF the boundary line between
British Columbia and the United States.
7One day young man came up from Sc
attic, representing himself the agent of
wholesale house. He brought three pack
ing cases filled with samples of various
sorts OF merchandise the sort that will
take up large packing space. He went
around among the embryo merchants of
Sumas and showed his samples and actually
look orders for quite large amount of
goods. Two days afterward he returned to
Seattle. The night before his departure a
nre at the back of the tent where he stop
ped was Kept burning by means of the
samples he had brought up while confed-
crates were filling the packing cases with
cans OF opium, which they had brought
across the line inside Of the town entirely
unhoticed- About six hundred pounds of
opium were thus taken into Seattle In this
way, and the same proceeding was repea ted
by other alleged and real commercial tray-
elers several times to my certain knowl-
which the real big smugglers work with
such success"
"A quiet but none the less vigorous move
ment has been inaugurated in Michigan for
the purpose Of electing Congressman Julius
Caesar Burrows as Senator to succeed Sem
ator Patton, recently appointed by Gov.
Rich" said Joseph Stern of Grand RAPIDS
at the Arlington yesterday. THE nursery
OF the Burrows boom Is in Grand Rapids.
ana its managers are ID. A. Blogett and his
son John, while Judge NJ. c. Burch is en-
sustenance for it, II promises to become a
heaithy infant, too. The northern. coun-
Ties OF the state show a very favorable SEN
tlnent toward Mr.. Burrows, while he Is
sun stronger in the other sections I
wouldn't be bit surprised to see his name
written on the roll of the United States
Senate when the term for which the late
Senator Stockbridge was elected expires"
nervousness is as much a fad as any
thinS else said DR.. Egbert Dixon of Buff
falo at Wormley's this morning, land the
modern soda water fountain has more to do
with the Increase OF the mania than any
thing else. In days OF old. when soda wa
yer was nrst added to the wares OF the
druggist. IL was devoted entirely to salts
iyElg the public taste for something cool
sweet and refreshing. Fruit sirups of a