The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-04-10
80 DOCTORS IN
DRUG RING Of
NEW YORK CITY
100000 Drug Addicts Are Found
in the City
CITY WILL SUPPLY DRUGS
II Fears An Outbreak BY Those Need
ing The Drug Unless They Are
Furnished II

New York, April 10.-Fcnowing the
arraignment yesterday OF the six ply
sicians and four druggists arrested
under the Harrison Anti-Narcotic law,
it was learned that agents of the Bur
eau of Internal Revenue, in two
months investigation into the traf-
fic in drugs in this city, had estab-
lished that in the last year 100000
prescriptions for the illicit procuring
OF narcotics had been issued and
filed.
1t was also ascertained that the Fed
eral authorities have evidence that
thirty physicians are in sort of
drug ring" issuing prescriptions for
narcotics for fees ranging from 25
cents to 81. The principal drug being
dispensed in this city, according to
the Investigations of the Federal
agents, is heroin, a deriyitiye OF op-
ium, and one of the most destructive
narcotic poisons. This drug is OBJ
tanned through the regular channels
at $12 to SIS an ounce and is retained
through the prescriptions at $50 to
SIS an ounce
The unscrupulous physicians writ
ing the prescriptions are each issuing
as many as 200 day, the agents are
prepared to prove, most of the doc
tors have no other practice. The in
vestigations of the Government in
New York have disclosed that 20 per
cent OF the drug addicts are less than
twenty-five years old and that includ-
ed in the victims are a remarkably
high percentage OF discharged sol
ders and sailors.
In one of the drugstores ransacked
in the raid the agents found a box
containing 5tg100. E4ee er.. ..tions for
drugs, all dated within the last ten
months. In another the records show
ed a years dispensing OF 100000 or
ders for narcotics. Records seized al
the physicians offices and retained
by the police indicate, it is said that
800 patients requiring drugs visited
the six doctors regularly, one physi
clan maintaining a card index of POO
daily patients.
AS an aftermath of the rail, the FED
eral agents and the police were wor
ried yesterday that somewhere in the
city were 800 men deprived of drug.
and likely to break out violently
when the narcotic hunger became
stronger.
AS a result the Bureau of Drug Ad
diction Clinic will be opened thii
morning at o'clock in the Board o
Health Building and until 5 o'clocl
drug addicts of the six arrested doc
tors will be supplied with drugs.
1T was pointed out by the Police
Department said Dr. Copeland
that this method of furnishing tn
drug will put the bootlegging phys
clan out of business, because tn
drug will be furnished at its rea
value and OF at the exorbitant figur
charged by the trahckers, but | wis
to emphasize the fact that the Healt
Department does not desire TO hav
every narcotic victim in the city re
port here for treatment The purpos
of the plan inaugurated tomorrow
will be to take care of the unfortl
nate victims formerly ministered t
by the arrested physicians.
1T is necessary to maintain thi
clinic because If the victims are pc
mitted TO roam about without tn
drugs they become dangerous. An e
ample of this happened only a shol
time ago when an innocent man wa
shot and killed by drug addict VIII
had just looted Madison Avenu
jewelry shop 1t is necessary to mai
tain this clinic because this raid an
further raids, depriving the addic
of their drugs. will inevitably pr
duce a wave of violent crime.
81 know that the drug habit
steadily on the increase and that II
present time there are between 15(
900 and 100000 drug addicts in tn
city. Many Of these are men WI
have only recently been discharge
from the army and navy