The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-07-25
MOONSHINE STILL IS
FOUND ON EAST SIDE
Detectives Sniff 0d0r in Street
and Follow 1t to Empty
Store.

Headquarters detectives. who say they
smelled their way to a secluded disti!lerv
on the East Side, arrested an alleged
moonshiner last night and seized the
apparatus he is charged with having
used He gave his name as George
Perlew; his home as the Mills Hotel
in Rivington street: his occupa ton
plumber. and his age. 20 years. He said
he came here from Louisville. Ky, in
February.
Policemen of the narcotic squad and
agents of the Federal Internal Revenue
Bureau have been roaming the East Side
since July l on the watch for accelerated
activity in the manufacture and distri-
button of Illicit stimulants as result
OF the war time prohibition statute.
Herbert Moog. Irving Higgins and Bar
ney Boylan, detectives with rowing COM
mi ssions, walked through Monroe street
early yesterday.
Higgins stopped and halted his com
ranions. II pmell hop" he said. speak
ing in the argot of drug addicts. The
odor came from the building at 56 Mon
roe street, one of a row Of tenements.
On the street floor were two stores one
OF which appeared to be untenanted. The
glass of windows and door gave no view
OF the interior because IL was opaque
with a covering OF paint or accumulated
dust
The detectives say they pursued the
smell through a hallway to a side en-
trance OF the supposedly untenanted
store. There was no response to knock
ings on the door. They broke 1t in.
They found themselves in one of three
rooms that had been built as living
rooms for the store tenant.
In the rearmost of the three rooms the
detectives say they found apparatus
which, when exhibited later at Police
Headquarters, supported their belief that
il might have been installed for the max
ing of whiskey. There was big boiler
Of galvanized iron with three gas burn
ers Across the boiler was a cone shaped
tank alleged to have been used as a
condenser. A tube ran from the boiler
to a small barrel In which the tube be-
came a series Of copper coils.
The detectives say that when they
found the apparatus a big milk can was
in position under the coils OF worm to
take the drip. Near by were two fifty
gallon hogsheads filled with liquid
that appeared to be in process OF fer
mentation. In other containers were
other liquids and sugar. The detectives
seized the movable apparatus, took sam
pies of all the liquids and turned a tap
that allowed to contents OF the hogs
heads to run TO waste.
A watch was kept on the building.
Late yesterday afternoon Perlow ap-
peared. Higgins was in the rear room
and arrested Perlow as he entered. The
| man was taken to police headquarters
and locked up. charged with violating
| the war prohibition statute. The police
said that Federal agents, who were
! summoned to the place. said that the
| evidence Justified an arrest, independ-
| emily of whether analysis should prove
| the intent to make whiskey.
The store proper hold nothing but the
dust that had accumulated during many
months OF disuse. Perlow 10 said TO
| have been in possession for six months.
and to have paid $40 a month rental.
He will be arraigned before United
| States Commissioner Hitchcock to-day