The Hawaiian gazette., 1915-08-06
Opium StnuggICr InventS Artificial
Abdomen Proof Against
Detection
QUARTERMASTER WINTER
BETRAYED BY DUPLlCITY
Mariner Who Fooled Inspectors
Here che2ts Chinese and
Gets Caught

No wonder the cn~toms officers here
were completely myStifcd bv the arrest
in San Francisco, July -, Of f. p. Win
.er, formerly Quartrrmaster in the
, Pacific Mail liner Siberia. New tricks
in the opium smugL Ter game are rare,
but Winter inyentCd what is better-a
simple modification Of an old one. q.
Nothing was the matter with the
trick, and Winter might b" living by it
yet, instead of on the bounty Of Uncle
Sam, if he had played square with his
c6nfederates, but he robbed them, and
thcy "squealed" on him. Consequently
he is under arrest in San Francisco
and warrant to bring him to Honolulu
s on the way to fnu nun there, when
he Lurline arrives next Tuesday.
Otto II. Heine, second deputy United
states marshal was not sent to the
cast for Winter, as suggested by
Ohm W. Preston, United States attorl
icy at San Francisco. Instead, J. Yves.
ey Thompson, acting United States at.
orney here, said last night that a
Jnited States commissioner warrant
vas sent in the Lurlhe and that Win
,er will be brought here by a deputy
rom the San Francisco marshall
Dtice-when is not yet known. !
Muscle Contraction Did Trick
At seven o clock in the morning Of
June % Winter walked off the Siberia,
few hours before she sailed from the
foot of Alakea street, with $4,000
worth Of opium wrapped around his
waist in a snk belt. 1t is the Oldest of
Did tricks, but Winter improved it.
BY contracting the muscles of his
abdomen, he was able to make his waist
measurement abnOrmaIly small. He
practised taking short breaths into the
PIPER portion Of his lungs and holding
ais REDUCED ahdAmen rigid until he
:Ould preserve his abnormal figure in.
definitely. ua|
The next step was to construct an
opium belt, which, when loaded, would
bring his figure to just what it ought to
-. There were no bulges, no Jumps,
nothing to tell bys the touch that his
midriff held anything more valuable
shan his break fast. 80.
SO Winter WIS duly patted and
frisked - at the foot of the gang
plank by the customs inspectors and
brought his opium ashore just the. same.
He sold it here, kept quiet for three
lays and then sailed for Vancouver in
che Makura on the twenty fifth.
3unkced Chinese Confederates
UnhappiIy for him, it WASH t his
opium. On three successive trips of the
Siberia he had carried opium to San
Francisco, struggled it passed the
guards there, and received a commission
of $40 a skin. That WASH t enough,
he decided, SO on the fourth trip he
jumped the ship at Honolulu and sold
the whole consignment on his own ac-
count
As a result, his Chinese confederatcs
at the other end were waiting for him
When he returned to San Francisco
they heard Of it, learned that he had
money enough to pay of numerous
small debts and that he had left again
for vacation at FL Rio, on the Rus
sian River Customs agents arrested
him As he stepped off the Sausaiito
ferry at the end of his jaunt.
Flat Abdomen Fools officers
Winters was arrested last year, con.
Victed of smuggling opium and served
eight months in the Alameda County
Jail. In spite Of his promises to re,
form, the customs agents kept sharp
Iwatch on him and always searched him
carefuIly but the firm, fat abdomen
they pattcd gave them no hint Of what
: it was wrapped with.
| Francis ], Krull, United States com.
missioner at San Francisco, fixed his
bonds at $1,000, which he was unable to
furnish, and he is IN Jail now, waiting
for tho Honolulu warrant the Lurline
is carrying to fetch him here for trial.