Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-04-09
3OOOACENTS
TO MAKEU.S..
"ORY'' JULY |.
Army of Revenue Men to
Be Used to Enforce
Prohibition Law.

Washington, April 9. - Three
thousand internal revenue agents
working in special arranged zones
throughout the United States will
enforce prohibition after July /,
according to plans announced to-
day by the revenue bureau. Nearly
500 inspectors will be trained for
the work, to be added to the force
Of 2,2S3 revenue agents already
available for police regulations
and the machinery for enforcement
will be in working order before the
date when absolute prohibition be-
comes effective.
This force of special agents will
be distributed among the districts
where law violation is threatened
attention will be paid to cities
where revenue officials look for
most persistent efforts to make
whisky illegally. In addition rev.
enue authorities plan to cooperate
with local police, and to leave the
greater part of the enforcement of
the law to local police forces.
Without such a plan, the force of
even three thousand federal agents
would be insufficient to police the
entire country.
Leave Small Ones To Police.
Although manufacture of liquor
for personal use will be equally il
legal with the production for sale,
revenue agents are expected to de-
vote most of their time to the COM
merciaI traffic, and to leave the en-
forcement of the law aga inst per
sonal manufacture to local police.
Although heretofore, liquor vio-
lations have been found by revenue
agents mainly among moonshiners
of southern mountains, however,
prohibition is expected to stimu-
late illicit distillation enormously
in cities.
One aspect of liquor, law viola
tions has grown out of the hun
dreds Of recipes for home manufac-
ture of beer, ale, wines and even
distilled liquors, now being circu-
lated in all parts of the country.
Booklets and printed pamphlets of
these recipes have reached revenue
officials from scores of cities. 1t
was explained today that to make
liquor according to these recipes
will constitute clear violations of
the law, although it was admitted
it would be difficult to prevent the
in most cases.
Must Report On Stills.
Private stills can be acquired
legally only by registration with
the revenue collector of the dis
trict. Manufacturers of stills are
under strict regulation of the rev.
enue bureau, being required to pay
$50 a year license fees for doing
business and pay a specific tax of
$50 on each still or worm sold. In
addition the manufacturer is re-
quired by law to report the name
and address of the purchaser, and
the purchaser of the still is re-
quired to report the purchase of his
still and the nature of the sur
roundings in which it is to be
placed. If a person is detected in
operating still, he is liable to pay
the license fees ordinarily imposed
on a distiller, in addition to fines
and other penalties for law viola
ton.
Many reports of the manufacture
of family stills" on a large scale,
and their sale at low prices, have
reached the revenue bureau, but
proved false in most cases.
Not To Hamper Industry.
Great care is to be observed by
revenue officials to prevent unnec-
eSsary interference with produc-
ton and distribution of alcohol for
industrial and commercial pur
poses, under the prohibition act.
governing production
Of this non-beverage alcohol will
be issued soon.
BY careful system of admins
Lrative regulations, the bureau
plans to make it difficult for the
use of fiavOring extracts, per-
fumes. toilet preparations and 9TH |
5T articles containing alcohol, for !
beverage purposes. Medicines !
alcohol already must |
nave a composition to make it |
impossible to take guam |
titles as a beverage without making |
he thirsty person i'll. Most es-
;ential oils contained in perfumes |
ire said to be guarantees against |
Use of perfume for drinking, since |
he oils will cause illness.