Omaha daily bee., 1919-11-16
rum RUNNERS
MURDER PLOT
IN DEPTHS OF
Maine WOODS
Fortunes Made Over Night
With Whisky Struggled
Through ShadoWy Thick
cts From Canada.
by International News Service.

Jackman, Me-, Nov. l5.-Thrilling
stories of fortunes now In night by
whisky runners in the wilderness of
northern Maine, close to the Cana
dian border. are coming to light fol-
lowing the brutal murder of Nelson
w. BARLEY, politician. fnancier.
hotel proprietor and sportsman of
this rugged backwoods country.
Although John A. Burke former
deputy sheriff, was arrested and
charged with the murder of BARLEY.
the facts surrounding the case pre-
sent mystery and many here be-
lieve that motive for the slaying
is to be found in feud between in
ternatlonal rum runners-a feud as
bitter and relentless as any family
war ever waged in the trackless
mountains of Kentucky.
Many Narrow Escapes.
Stories of big wagons piled high
with whisky and drawn by four
horses moving cautiously from Can
ada under cover of darkness are COM
mon property here. With the United
States dry" liquor bought at a low
price in Canada sells on this side
OF the line at high figure. Farm
teams, flivvers and larger motor We
hicles all have their places in the
stories. Narrow escapes from the
watchful eyes of revenue officers
are related. That the forests along
the international line have many
cleverly concealed caches of whisky
and other liquors is freely admitted.
Some of these woodland rendezvous
are said to hold from $4,000 to $lO,-
600 worth of goods"
With Bare Fists.
Reports of Spy" working among
the whiskey runners and the theft
an $1,000 "hide" Canadian whiskey
are mentioned as two of the direct
causes of the Staying of BARLEY.
Jackman plantation is a country of
red-blooded men. Arguments are
settled on the spot with bare fists.
Revolvers are seldom carried. Bart
ley never had "a gun" That Bart
ley beloved by all who knew him,
should be shot down apparently
without chance to defend himself
has angered the people over whom
he held sway.
The last seen of BARLEY was when
he left his hotel-the Moose River
House here-accompaned by Burke.
That night Burke staggered into his
home with blood streaming from a
bullet wound in his leg. He had just
strength enough to call for a doc
tor. The next day his condition
improved. Burke summoned a dep
uty sheriff, told him that BARLEY
had shot him during an argument
and asked for warrant for Bart
ley's arrest. When the officer went
to the Moose river to serve the war
rant BARLEY was found to be miss
ling. For two days posses searched
the woods without discovering any
trace of the missing man. At this
point Henry BARLEY. a brother of
the proprietor of the Piscataguis
Exchange hotel at Greenville juno
ton, arrived in Jackman to direct
the search. Someone came forward
with the information that Bartleys
automobile had been seen the night
he disappeared standing in the
woods about two miles from the
saw mill village. Henry BARLEY
went to the spot, penetrated 40 feet
in to sthe underground and discov-
cred his brothers body, lying in a
shallow, woodland spring. The
motor car was found abandoned on
the road leading to Burke's home.
There were blood stains on the
car.
Burke Arrested.
Burke was placed under guard at
his home, but was not arrested.
Later Sheriff Moores stated that
as result Of the autopsy Burke
had been exonerated. Henry Bart
ley demanded that Burke be ar
rested. He charged that Burke's in
jury was self-inficted flesh wound.
Some days later the arrest was
ordered.
In trying to find a motive for the
murder of Barley, investigations
have come upon the whisky run
ners-the great underground trade
of the border lands. They learned
that three men here formed whisky
pool. These men brought a big lot
Of whiskey over the international
line and hid it in a cache in the
woods. One of the men was sent
to Augusta, Waterville and other
Maine cities to sell the whisky.
Che whisky had been bought for a
nominal sum in Canada, but the
agent on this side found a ready
market for the goods and at high
figure. Returning to Jackman, he
was dismayed to find that every
bottle had been stolen from the
"hide."