Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1919-08-29
WOMAN bETRAYS
BOOZE MAKER
HARDIN COUNTY STILL MOST
CAREFULLY CON.
cEALeo.
SAYS STILLS ARE IN
MARSHALL COUNTY
Poy nter, Under Arrest, Gives informa-
ton to Federal officsrs-Pronnises to
Reveal Location Of Other Stills IN
Hardin and Marshall Counties
Much Whisky Manufactured.

Eldora, Aug 9s.--Concealed by
primitive nature where the hand OF
man had never been employed. the
moorshine still found in Hardin
county recently was as we'll protected
from spying eyes as any ever con-
structed in the mountain Businesses OF
the south. No modern Sherlock
Holmes no matter how keen his eye,
no matter how long his power of de-
duction, would have been able TO
establish communication with the
pla ce without a sure footed guide who
knew its location.
In charge OF the still was W. T..
POINTER, from the mountains of North
| Carolina, and said to be wanted In
North Carolina Poynter now Is in
jail here under $1,000 bond to await
the action of the federal grand jury
which meets in October. He says that
| If the government will be lenient with
| him he will lead the officers to nest
of stills in Hardin and Marshall coun-
ties that will open their eyes.
A woman--not woman scorned.
but a woman trouuced-is responsible
for POINTER being in Jail. She is
German, a grass widow and Poynters
lhousekeeper. Last Tuesday night, ac-
cording to her story, Poynter returned
home from the still under the in
fiuence of the white Kicker. she
chided him for his condition and ne
strucl, her. She bounced hammer OIL
his head and then a general night toi-
lowed. The woman was terrifically
mauled and her face looked as IL II
had come in contact with some OF
the barbed wire entanglements on the
west front. She escaped in the night
and walked more than a mile thru
the forest to the home Of the nearest
ne!ehbor The next morning she went
to Eldora where she informed the
county officials that II they would lock
up POINTER she would tell story that
would open their eyes. Finally 1t was
agreed to arrest Poynter on warrant
charging assault and battery and when
he was safe behind the bars at Eldora
the woman told her story. :
The place where the still stood is
OF the main travelled road and prob
ably no other foot than Poynter's had
ever been set on the ground. The
only way to reach the place was to fol-
low a winding creek for more than a,
mile and thru the widest and most
desoiate spot in Iowa. Thick under.
brush, hrfaTs. fallen trees, gulleys,
were encountered at every step and
more than one member of the party
fell during the long tramp. After more
than an hour of picking labori0vs
way. the party finally arrived at
point where the woman said the stili
was. 1t could not be seen. On every
hand was ,desolation and primitive
nature. Finally the woman pushed
a side bunch Of bushes and the onl-
GERS looked down into ravtne. They
clambered down the rocky hillside ana
soon were looking into typical noun
tain still with all the appurtenances
for making the white kick"
The capacity was fifty gallons and
an industrious man could have sup
piled half the countryside with suf-
hcient liquor to keep it in kicking
humor. for a month.
Poynter says a moonshiner from
North Carolina, a deserter from the
army, sold him the still; that he has
sold others in Hardin county; that
four moonshiners from North Caro-
lima are engaged in business in Hardin
county and four others in Marshah
county. the federal officials believe
that an attempt is being made to man
ufacture whisky on large scale IN
that section of the state. and will make
an effort to run them down. Poynter
says the other stills are as well con-
cealed as his and that they only
operate at night to prevent the smoke
from being seen.