West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1897-09-02

we mao not gone Tar down this hOl-
low before we saw wagon and
team ahead OF US. THIS was loaded
with peaches and was evidently
near the still. AS we drew nearer,
an enclosure about twenty feet
square came Into view, the fence
being formed of four or five rounds
Of poles. Within this enclosure
were ten large tubsj at the far side
was a heavy trough, and in the
center was the still proper. This,
which was of copper and held 10
gallons, was inclosed in rough
stone furnace, in which was a roar
ing fire. The cap consisted of u
roughly made keg fastened to the
copper still by a ring Of mud. The
pipe leading to the worm was
screwed into the top Of this me-
chanical cap. The worm consisted
of few coils of pipe lying in box,
INTO which a stream Of copporas
water ran from aspiring on the bluff.
A small stream of clear "singlings"
was running from the worm into
keg.
There was no shelter over the
still except the primeVal oaks, which
raised high their branches and
threw deep shadow over the scene.
The whole wildcat" outfit was so
limited and simple that it could be
put on wagon, moved to new
spot and set up in a few hours any
night. Several men were working
around the still. Two were busily
engaged in smashing peaches with
mauls in the troughs and placing
the smashed ones In a tub, which
had just been emptied into the
still. The peaches in the ten tubs
were everywhere from one to ten
days old. When they have been
standing ten days, the stiler said =,
they were ready to be distilled. He
said he made one quart of brandy
from a bushel of apples or peaches.
The stiller, with his gray beard Of
two weeks growth, his sleeves to
his elbows and his trousers to his
knees, his bare head and teet, gave
a symmetrical appearance to the
whole.
This, then, was the "wildcat"
still; the theme of tho Southern
poet and the Northern sensational
ist; the institution that keeps an
army of U. S. Marshals constantly
busy and is a menace to civil So
ciety. These Illicit stills are to be
found all through north Mississippi,
north Georgia, South Carolina and
east Tennessee. All he efforts of
the marshals to put them down
have so far been Of little avail.
Each year many stills are cut to
pieces by the marshals and the
"wlld CATERS" taken to the Federal
prisons from each county; but it is
very difficult to convict many OF
them. They are enemies to the
Federal Government, and think it
no harm to defeat the law, even at
the cost Of perjury. Then, so many
are implicated that any one has an
army Of friends to help him out.
The average "wiid CATER" does
not mind lying in Jail during the
winter months very badly anyho v,
and the majority of them have
served few terms some time in
their lives.
The typical "wild cater" raises
or buys considerable amount of
corn each summer, and instead Of
selling it to the merchants, he gets
it ground, and during idle days
makes it up OIL his secret still way
of in a hollow somewhere where
the owl and the moon are his only
companions. He then secrets a
quantity Of bis product on a rickety
one horse wagon, and, calling him
self a clock fxer, a stove fxer or a
person Of some other Inherent pro-
fes5ion, be travels over the country,
usually in county where ne is not
kuo1n, distributing his elixir Of
life TO the thirsty populace. it
would seem that the "wild-catter"
would become wealthy, but such Is
by no mems the case. The average
"moonshincr" makes only enough
whiskey TO keep himself and score
Of friends half drunk OH The time.
or all drunk half the time, and
some to sell to get money enough