Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-06-15
ONE KILLED AND
TWO WOUNDED
IN RAID ON STILL

=
mountain people are in a Juror of
| excitement over the killing yester-
day Of w. D. Dorsey, federal pro-
hibition agent, who was shot to death
while destroying a distillery On the
premises of John Farmer, a noun
taineer, residing five miles from
here.
| Dorsey was shot through the neck
with Winchester rifle and died in
stantly. The first shot killed him.
AS he fell dead, Ed Carpenter, man
| who was with him on the raid, open
| ed fire on Farmer with a SO caliber
| revolver and shot him through the
ABDOMEN, inflicting a dangerous, if
not fatal wound. Farmer then sho-
Carpenter in the chest. The wound
was painful but not dangerous.
Farmer was arrested and brought
mere TO be, placed in Jail, but the
essary to take him to Gainesville to
a hospital. 1t is understood that
ms chances of recovery are doubt
as to whether he will be tried in
the state court or the federal court,
In the event Of his recovery.
Dorsey was known as Little Bill"
dorsey and for eighteen months had
disttllers and blockade runners. He
lived near the Messy Creek camp
ground, was a native Of White coun-
W, and knew the country and the
people. 1t was said Of him that he
Was an agent who could not be
bought or bluffed or begged" The
liquor fraternity respected his cour-
age, and feared his efficiency He
made himself thorn in their flesh
When Dorsey accepted his commits
SION 81 as a federal prohibition agent,
try and notified the people of his new
job He told them fronkly what he
proposed to do. There was no cam
outage or mincing of words in his
announcement. Il am going to see
that you people make your living
between the plow handles this year."
he Informed those constituents whom
he suspected of engaging in an in
dustry different from agriculture.
There are not going to be any more
picnics along the branches in this
territory" And the worst thing the
mountain people say against Little
Bilr' is that he meant exactly what
he said.
In the southwestern part of White
county, where a little mountain
branch marks the dividing line be-
tween White and Hall counties. is a
railroad spur track which leads to
a pyrites mine. This road goes
down from Shoal Creek valley to the
main highway from Cleveland to
the trestle is very narrow and the
road is very rough. On either side
of the trestle is a high embankment.
Versions Differ
The trestle makes a perfect trap
for blockade runners travelling that
road, and Little Bill" Dorsey used
to take his stand there, put bar
across the road, and catch them 60
ing down from the little mountain
valley to ,theE main highway. He
made the 'trestle such a dangerous
place that the blockade runners in
that vicinity were compelled to take
around it.
Along the highway from Cleve-
land to Gainesville, Dorsey operated
with most. aggravating frequency
is the automobile and many the gal
lon of moonshine liquor that have
fallen a prey to his vigilance in re-
cent months. A blockade runner
travelling that road was haunted by
the thought of Little BilP' Dorsey,
who was liable to step out and stop
him at any narrow place, confiscat-
ing his car and his cargo.
In hunting distilleries, Dorsey was
no less efficient. It is said he would
post himself in the top of a tree on
a mountain side and sit there for
hours, searching the landscape for
the tell-tale smoke from moonshin-
er's run" When the moonshiners
got on to his habits they began to
burn stumps in the mountain coves
to give him false clues.
He would start at the mouth of a
branch, where it .emptied into a
creek, and trace it to its source.
Wherever a brook came down to the
branch, he would turn up the brook
and trace it to its source. His
"branch- walking" habits made it
very difficult to hide a distil1ery
making of liquor requires running
water.
Versions of the shooting differ
widely. Some say Dorsey went to
Farmers house and was under the
house searching for a "stilP' when |
Farmer discovered him and shot |
him. Carpenter claims that Dorsey |
it on Farmer, and was making the |
search in a shedroom adjoining the |
kitchen when Farmer opened fire.
News Spreads Rapidly
The news of the shooting spread
like wild-fire through the mountain
country. Automobiles running the
mountain roads took it far and wide
that Little Bill Dorsey had "got |
it in the neck" which literally was
the truth in this particular case,
for the bullet from Farmers Win
chester tore away Dorsey's jugular |
vein and almost severed his head |
from his shoulders. Telephone wires
were popping with the news of the
deadly gun duel that was fought fnI
the peaceful stillnessN of a Sabbath |
morning.
Dorsey worked under the direction
of D. ]. CAN'T, supervising federal
prohibition agent in Atlanta On re-
ceiving the news of Dorsey's death, |
Mr.. CAN'T dispatched Scott Jackson
and j. o. Lay to make an investiga-
ton of the shooting. They spent
some hours in the neighbor Sunday
morning and returned to Atlanta.
There is much speculation as to
what the outcome of the shooting
will be. The mountain people be-
lieve there will either be, lull or
a 'two-for-one" campaign against the
liquor traffic, by which phrase they
mean that the force of agents will
be doubled in this vicinity.
Shoe Punches Profifpnr