Evening star., 1918-01-15
DECISION REGARDING.
UN[AbELED WHISKY.
No Law to Prevent Bringing 1t
Into D. c., Justice
Stafford Rules.
CITES WORDING OF LAW

There is no law to prevent the bring
ton by any means of transportation.
This. in effect, was the ruling of JUS
tice Stafford of the District Supreme
Court today. Justice Stafford sustain
ed the demurrer of Robert Long. one
of fifty-eight men arrested in Novem-
Der by agents of the Department of
Justice on cars of the Baltimore. Wash
ington and Annapolis line for bringing
unlabeled whisky into the District of
Columbia. Justice Stafford ruled:
IF the Congress had intended to pro-
h1bit the bringing or carrying, trans
porting or importing of any liquor by
any person upon any vehicle of a COM
mon carrier without certain labelling
1t was perfectly easy for them to have
done so. and they did make use of such
language in other sections of the chap
ter, when dealing with other subjects.
Believes Language Was Chosen.
"It seems clear then that the
language used was deliberately chosen
to express the exact meaning Of the
legislature"
After reviewing legislative statutes
pictures, tickets. etc, and their trans
portatfon by mail or otherwise and the
language used in the framing of these
laws with specific reference to their
transportat ton, importation, taking.
bringing. etc, Justice Stafford said in
part:
shipping" Is Prohibited.
"In section 24o there is no express
prohibition of the bringing in of in
of such liquors upon the vehicles of
common carrier. nor of the transport
ing or importing thereof. but only
and explicitly of the shipping or
causing to be shipped of any package
package being labeled so as to show
the name of the consignee' as well as
tents"
Referring to the indictment and its
source, Justice Stafford remarked. in
part: 1T is proper to remark that at
the time when what is now section 24O
OF the penal code was enacted it was
not necessarily unlawful to possess. to
toxicating liquors in the District of
Columbia. nor to bring such liquors
into the District unless made unlawful
by this section. Nor should it be over
looked that this Indictment does not
attempt to charge any offense under
the more recent acts of Congress
known as the Webb Kenyon law, the
Reed 'bone-dry' amendment, or the
HHstTiet OF columbia prohabttton law"
Language Of Section Involved. n
The section on which the prosecution
was brought and the indictment was
found declares that whoever shall
knowingly ship or cause to be shipped
from one state. territory or district of
the United States into any
other state. territory or district of the
United States . any package
of or package containing any spiritu-
Gus. vinous. matted. fermented or other
intoxicating liquor of any kind, unless
such package be SO labeled on the out
side cover as plainly to show the name
of the consignee. the nature of it's con-
tents and the quantity therein, shall be
fined not more than $1,000" The ques-
tion. therefore. is whether the bringing
of liquor from Maryland into the Dis
trict of Columbia in the way specifcal-
1y described in the Indictment is a vio-
lation Of said section.
The termination of this question dis
poses of the other cases, unless an
appeal is taken by the government.
the defendant. Robert Long, and filed
the demurrer on his behalf