The Washington times., 1912-02-02
MOONSH|NERS PLY
INCREASING TRADE,
REVENUE MEN SAY
More Arrests Made and Dis
tilleries Raided Last Year
Than Ever Before.

While the field agents of the Inter-
nal Revenue Office are doing everything
IN their power to break up 'moonshine"
WHISKY making. an increase in the
amount of output each year Is noted
This violation of the Government laws
Is almost entirely in the mountainous Sec
uons OF the South. Figures furnished
py the Internal Revenue Office show to
what extent Illicit whisky making is
carried on.
During the fiscal year which ended
tne last day of last June, the field men
seised and destroyed 2.l71 distilleries.
, mede Ge arrests, and captured 81, "a
salons OF spirits. all valued at ssls,-
ses76. The increase in the number of
Illicit distflleries seized and DESTROYED
over the previous fiscal year was $50. A
STEADY increase in such violation of the
revenue laws has been noted since 1905.
There were no deaths due to wounds
received In fights with the "moon-
SINNERS" during. the past year, though
Twelve persons were wounded in raids
Many Seizures.
Figures showing the number of dis
tiHeries seized in the different States,
follow:
Alabama, 875; Arkansas, Q; Colorado,
~: New Jersey. 1; New York, 5; North
Carolina, 40; South Carolina, $50: Ten
nessee. IA; Virginia, 21s; West Virginia,
!: Oklahoma. !.
Georgia leads. with North Carolina sec
.ond, Alabama third. and South Caro-
Invariably. the raider. nnd these
hazardous to reach, making the work
0f the revenue field agents extremely
tiresome and dangerous Whenever the
officers meet with resistance their work
is made more dangerous, because OF
hiding can easily pick of an officer
and take shot at him without the
raider getting the same chance to shoot
back. However. In recent years the
OF old. and the officers seldom meet
with serious resistance. The average
"moonshiner" runs at the approach Of
the officers.
the years gone by were noted for their
flghting 'moonshiners," this desperate
nature in the mountaIneers seems to
have disappeared.
and fascinating. Usually the revenue
agents receive "tips" from the law
abiding people of the mountain sec
tions. reporting that a distillery is in
operation at certain place. The chief
for the scene Of the dlstiliery.
A couple OF axes are sufficient, to cut
the plants to bits. and the whisky
found is carted back to the headquar-
ters Of the raiders and a report made
to the Internal Revenue officer.
"Distillery beer" which is usually
the "leavings'" after the whisky Is
made, is poured out by the officers, be-
,- Corn Whisky. E
Most OF the whisky made by the
''moonshiners'' is distilled from corn,
though barley and other grains are
used.
One Of the interesting contentious
made by the "moonshiners" as an ex-
cuse for violating the revenue laws
is that I'VE raise our own corn; why
haven't we the right to make whisky
out OF 1t II we care
Marketable places for selling corn
raised in the "moonshine" sections are
very hard to reach. and this, the noun
taineers say, Is a reason why they
should be permitted to make whisky
OF their corn, because they find 1t much
easier to haul spirits to a market, and
also that the profit from It is much
greater than what they would receive
per bushel for their corn.
Those who have made a study of con-
ditions In the mountainous country OF
the South say that regardless of how
often the revenue Officers raid the dis
tilieries, the 'moonshiners" will con-
tinue to make whisky. 1t has been a
custom with these people for years and
years, and 1t Is handed down from one
generation to another