The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-06-17
CONFESSION OF
 A COCAINE FIEND
 By MARY WEST" atonaIN NewsB Inc)
By "MARY WESTn
Copyright Bureau, Inc)

1 that I had incurred by first taste for | the drug from a toothache mixture, and I admired the cleyerness of Lit in thinking of the scheme. Lit did everything thoroughly al-
 ways. He had a huge signboard, on which was printed in high letters: "OUR TooTEIACHE CURE" | and this, extending right long the | front of the factory, could be seen
 very plainly from the river. In the | trade papers he issued advertisements
 and had paragraphs inserted about | the new cure.
 A Scheme Which Prospered. | And now-mark the cleverness of ' the man-he didn't have to ask the | wholesale druggists for them to sup | ply him with drugs; they came to | him.
 | He fitted up managers office at a 1 City address, advertising this also of | course and putting one of his crea- | lures into 1t, and every dealer who | applied for an order was sent away rejoicing, as liberal a supply of CO., caine as possible being, of course, i'm CluueQ Tn eaCh purCnaSe. These orders were delivered at the | factory, and left there untouched ex- | cept for the cocaine, which was at once removed to Mrs. Bayneton's flat
 and to Lifts shop.
 The factory was left quite empty
 and idle, only an old caretaker being there to receive the goods. But no one took any notice of that; 1t was no one's business.
 The wholesaler dealers were paid
 promptly, and 1t was nobody's affair to ask the Toothache Cure Co. when | they were going . to market their goods.
 For months this scheme prospered. Repeat orders, not only for cocaine , but for other drugs as well in order
 to allay suspicion, were given and duly honored, and it looked as if we had a certain and everylasting source of supply.
 But there was evidently somebody very clever behind the Government
 scenes somewhere, somebody very determined to stop, or at any rate reduce. drug taking, for the manager
 at the City office came up one day to
 say that a man had been making in- quiries there as to the real proprietor of the toothache cure. Would it b.
 
 City office at any time convenient? Even now ] can remember Iit's face as he looked at the white shak- ing, poor thing of a man who would do anything for the sake of S10 a week to keep himself and his wife
 from starvation.
 What did he say?" What did you
 tell him ?" snapped out Lit, and I hate to see white man quiver be-
 fore a yellow one.
 T told him that I was simply the manager" was the answer. That I had my instructions not to divulge
 anything as the remedy was quite a
 secret one, and the proprietor for
 many reasons didn't wish to have his
 name in appearance" The Chinaman Disturbed. | An, that was good, that was good! You were clever then" Lit smiled ap- rroval. What else did he ask, eh?" "Oh, lots of things" He asked me ! 1T we used much cocaine, as statistics | on the import of the drug were being collected, and would be disposed to l place our books at the disposal of the committee of inquiry which he | thought would be held? He seemed to be quite frank and open, said that
 1t was in the public interest that in- | qufries as to the use of the drug were being made and every little bit of in formation would help. I told him | would consult my principal and he's going to call again next week." Lit was quite disturbed at the news. | He declared that it must be the. same people at work who had sent the man to his chemists shop to look ae his books; that there was no inquiry | going to be held as to the import of | afr1A F., | spy. Every large purchase of CO., | caine was being inquired into; there ! was no doubt at all about that | And surely enough the next day | the manager brought another piece
 of startling news.
 He had been down to the factory ! just to look around the place and the | caretaker told him that a man had | been making inquiries there, askinl, who the proprietor was and whether | the cure was manufactured there
 and so on. Fortunately the old fel- | low had not let the visitor pass the | gates. and had referred him to the | city office.
 Lit, though I didn't like him per | sonalIy in spite of the fact that I | served hinn-remenrber I was a drug | fiend and didn't care what I was do- | ing so long as my cravings were sat- I fsffod-@was really a most remarkable | man in a crisis. He told the manager | to prepare a full statement of the CO., | caine bought during the past few | months to show all receipts and in- | voices and so on, and to say that as | soon as his employer returned from | abroad he would tell him of the in | quiries that had been made. but in | the meantime he thought it was all the information he could justifably I give.
 l And if the spy asks you any | further questions don't answer them, | put him off, instructed Lit. "Re | can't force you to speak, remember i that"
 "Oh I'll see to <hst, but then again | perhaps he'll go to the factory again
 and find there's no business doing | there?"
 "Oh I'll fix that airight.' said Lit | grimly.
 And two days later he told me that
 the factory had been burned to the ground, thoroughly and completely