The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-02-16
SOUTHERN UTAH MOOHSHINERS
REVENUE AGENT DESCRIBES
HIS TRIP TO DIXIE.
First Illicit Still Ever Located West
of the MississipPi-''Woods Are
-ull of Them"

Internal Revenue Agents Robert
Towne and ]. B. Mccoy have returned
to Denver from southwestern Utah.
where they went to arrest a man for
manufacturing .'moonshine' whisky. or
'-white-eye" whisky, as the natives in
that section of the country choose to
call =.
The man they went after, and who is
now under arrest in Salt Lake. is nam
ed Stocks. It was said he had made his
boast TO a few confidential friends that
he had in his still enough dynamite to
blow the whole establishment into the
air, ard that before he would allow the
government officials to arrest him,
should they ever get on 10 his business,
he would blow himself, plant and Of
1cers into q million pieces, by touch
irg off the explosive. Mccoy and
row>e were aware of this threat, but
made the arrest before Stocks could
carry out his threat.
According to the statement of Agent
ToWne 10 a Denver Republican re
porter. the still which they located and
subsequently destroyed, was the first
the treasury department had ever To-
Gated west of the Mississippi river.
When Agents Mccoy and Towne went
QOffn AiAlO Oldil- lAANy QiNA AAyl hAACN ~-Ae~-
there was more than one still there, but
upon their arrival at their destination
they We're Informed that the woods
were full of them
AN ISOLATED COMMUNITY.
1.-THE section of the state we visited
said Agent Towne last evening at the
Brown Palace hotel, was very remote
from civilization. We were not within
miles of any settlement, excepting the
small town of St. George. where we ar
rested the man We were after The town
is a Mormon settlement, and neStles IN
a valley about 20 miles square, SIX miles
from the Nevada line. The elevation or
the valley is about 5000 feet, and is shut
in on all SIDES by mountains over 5000
feet high, the peaks of which are per-
petUally covered with snow. The Nor
mons predominant in the village, which
is the county seat OF Washington coun-
ty, ard they are mostly Swedes and
English.
About two weeks ago Mccoy and
myself received word from Washington
TO 90 10 st. George and make the ar
rest. We went to Salt Lake, and from
there by railroad to Milford. We were
then 14S miles from ST. George, and had
TO make the journey in a covered We
hicie, with the thermometer at 81 be-
low zero. II was an awful ride. On the
third day out from Milford We reached
the summit of the pass leading over the
mountains surrounding Paradise val
ley
A LOVELY VALLEY.
"Over half a mile below US was one Of
the prettiest valleys l ever saw. Ii was
almost square. being 40 miles one way
and 80 another. II was all cut up into
farms, and here and there could be seen
farm houses. barns and other buildings.
The little settlement of St. George could
be easily seen, and looked peaceful and
quiet On the pass the thermometer reg
istered q degrees below zero II TOOK
US fut d few hours 10 reach St George.
where It was so mild that men were
walking around the town in their shirt
sleeves
That climb down the mountain side
was one of the most complete and sud
den chanses as regards temperature l
ever experienced. When We started
down we were bundled up TO or very
ey es in robes, coats and blankets As
we descended we were compelled to
throw on first one blanket. then an
ether Finally we took off our over
coats ard overshOes, and by the time
we rode up TO the hotel we all heartily
Wis h d we were not wearing such heavy
The climate of PARADISE
valley is semi-trODical, * being very
Warm IN tHE IlluNAC VI liz 0eA+f eNAAe~
col at night During the winter d
little ice forms.
Upon DIR arrival at St. George We
hunted up the sheriff. explained our
mission, ard planned our capture. We
&c cided TO take 20 chances with our
man. owing TO the dynamite story.
When everything was n readiness We
started for the foothills, where we kaew
our man carried on his business So
Tx-a him that
he had no time to set off the explosive
The arrest was not accompanied by any
loss OF life. as Stocks had predicted
would follow if any government officials E,
disturbed him.
HE WAS SURPRISED.
when we walked in upon him we
caught him in the very act of making
.white-eye whisky. His plant was very
complete. with a capacity of ten gallons
q day. which he sold for $3.50 per gal
lon. but crude in its composition AFTER
securing him we destroyed his plant
and returned to Salt Lake. Stocks
pleaded guilty at his preliminary hear
Ing. and being unable 70 give bond, IS
now in jail.
..Whiie| in St. George we learned that
the place was settled along back in the
SOS. and irasmuch as there has never
been a saloon in that part OF the coun-
try. or in St. George, we are led 10 pc
lieve that mOOnshine' has oeen manu-
there ever since the valley was
settled. Stocks. we are given 70 under
stand, had not been making whisky
a'ore than two or three years. but there
are oth=l- stills in that vicinity. when
have BEEN in existence for years. and
our report to the department viii be a
surprise TO Che officials. who had never
suspected that still whisky was made
above TIE Mason and Dixon line, or
west of the Mississippi.
LAS might Be imagined. the arrest OF
Stocks created d profound sensation
like wiidfire all over the VAL
ey. His arrest caused the other moon.
shine whisky fellows TO hunt cover,
and we knew it would be useless to at
tempt tc follow them at that time and
make arrests. We will wait for the mat