The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-10-05


from all the comfort they derive by
searching and rapId-flre interrogatories,
imagine that the springs which honey
comb the country roundabout are the
fountain heads from which the yellow
corn liquor bubbles so eopiously, or that
some bacchanalian Moses had roved
through the craggy forests and with his
magiewand smitten the boulders, and
that instanter the sparkling beverage
gushed out in response to the stroke.
The powers that be refuse to accept
the theory that the sumptuous plenitude
of intoxicating spirits is the result o
any magic. and so suspicious are they
that the stuff comes into existence and
finds its wav to market in unstamped
kegs and unsealed jugs through the i'm
defatigable efforts os the man behind
the copper kettle that they insist upon
having their raiders invade the sacred
precincts of the backwoodsman, delve
into the recesses o. his labyrinth and
discern, if possible, what his output is,
and how much oS it, If any, is being
manufactured contrary to the inflexible
edicts of the federal government. 1t is
not an infreouent thing for a full
fiedged deputy in the wild mountain
counties. where stillhouses dot the hill
sides and valleys. to employ assistants
to aid in spotting the transgressors of
the statutes and from personal observa-
ton get evidence that viii prove unas-
sailable in the presence of the dignified
judge OF q United States district court
and insure the conviction of the manu-
facturer of firewater and the confisca-
ton of his crude plant. 1t is while nos
| ing around the haunts of these tall-tim-
Der feudists that the peregrinations of
the too-sedulous scou. often terminate
| in way not altogether of his choosing
and decidedly not to his liking.
When the marshals emissary starts
| on one Of his expeditions he buckles on
a brace of army guns, stuffs his belt
full of death-dealing pellets, arranges
| with the jailer to have cell in readi-
ness u2on his return with bewhis-
| kared prisoner, mounts orancing and
| frothygmounted steed and sallies fortli
| with blood in his eyes and resolution
| indelibly stamped upon his brow, little
dreaming of the lachrymose finish that
| awaits him.. Mr.. Spy knows exactly
where to find the ravine and the brook
let, and once gaining an eminence he
shades his peppers with massive hand
and scans the horizon, oblivious. of
course. that he is making picture of
| Terrible Teddy at San Juan. His crit
| zeal search is not unrewarded, for not
far in the distance he sees bit of blue
smoke curling skyward. The instinct Of
the revenue detective tells him that
what he has been seeking is now in
sight. His Unsuitable desire to capture
4 prompts him to sink his spurs deep into
the already bleeding sides os his jaded
4 mount, and . mad dash. is made to
reach the object of his ambition before
the fast setting sun has disappeared be-
/ hind the lofty peaks of the Alleghanies
and left the scene of his contemplated
operations enyeloped in impenetrable
/ arkness
Frank Minis, of Roanoke, had long
enjoyed en- enviabIe reputation for
daredevil bravery, and his many brush
es with the Illicit distillers Of this ter
ritory had gained him much notoriety.
When he related his hair breath es-
capes to the new men in the service
4 many OF them felt like throwing up the
sponge before the bell had sounded for
] the first round, while others were quite
willing to stay in the ring, and when
1 the opportunity finally presented itself,
as It surely would, to deliver solar
4 pIexus that would make them danger
4 Gus rivals for the honors which the old
stager, Minis, wore so proudly. Minis,
| like other gladiators who had preceded
/ him to the laurel-wreath dispensary,
entered the arena once too often, hove
ever. and after sparring for wind, went
down in ignominious defeat.
| The question at,the top Of the column:
Hello, hub, anybody round?" was adj
dressed by Scott Minis to a ten-years-
old boy playing in front Of small hut
the habitatton of a Franklin county
j noonshiner. The child was puny-1ook-
ing, but he was wise. He had been
trained not to answer questions put to
him by strangers. He had seen these
i niee-looking men before. A craniolo-
gist might have mistaken the youngster
for an imbecile, so oddly shaped was his
small head. Just what conclusions
Ih1ilLS IGdCIltu vi ILLS SCUIe is IUt
known. The little fellow turned quick
4 " and ran into the house. Minis had
ridden into the yard, when lean, pale
4 faced woman with unkemDt hair and
with feet unadorned appeared on the
/ threshold of the humble home. Her ga
/ bardine made it evident that the fash
ions IN that neighborhood were not
taken from the ''Delineator." or the
Designer" or from any other up-to-
now pattern book. What cared eshe for
style. She was the wife of a lnoonshi-
/ ner, the sister os moonshiners, the
! mother of moonshiners. She could spot
a revenue officer two miles away, and
she knew full well when she saw Minis
in the yard that he was Sin the service !,
"Evenin'. stranger: won't We light?''
was the salutation and invitation ex.
tended the visitor in one breath by the
homely creature in the doorway.
| Minis crawled from his saddle and in
/ troduced himself as "Mr. Frank Brown
a mine prospector" The embryo moon
sinner with the unsymmetrical pate
remember very well a great family OF
tow-headed children who came from
a Quinsigamond farm house to attend
| came again into the yard and led the
tired horse away. while "Mr. Brown
took a seat on the doorstep and began
Ginning the woman. The shadows
| were frightening and the boy knew