The Washington times., 1921-10-26
PH|LADELPH|A|S
DOPE SOURCE DC
POLICE BELIEVE
Getting Evidence Against In
genious PeddIers Difficult Part
of Work, Detectives Say.

That Philadelphia is the main
source of supply ofi'dope" which finds
it's way into the District to be peddled
to drug addicts. is the belief Of police.
who have discovered the region near
Third street and Virginia avenue
southwest to be a literal hothouse
which supplies "hope-heads" with the
material for flowery dreams.
Despite their knowledge of the
Illicit traffic in drugs going on daily.
Fourth precinct police admit that
backed up by proof, and this is the
hardest to get.
The average dope peddler and his
patron, the addict. possess a cunning
that often outwits the police. trained
as they are in detecting and running
down criminals.
Most of the dope is peddled in the
streets now, because the police and the
pharmacy inspectors of the Internal
Revenue Narcotic Bureau and the Po-
lice Department have habit of walk
ing in at all hours on the houses that
they suspect, and have on several oc-
casions torn up boards and steps and
found drugs hidden.
One Experience.
Some time ago Sergeant Green and
Detective Mansfield, of the Fourth
precinct, received word that dope"
was sold in a certain house in south
west. They Investigated but were
only able to locate few needles and
syringes. They were not satisfied and
decided to prolong that search,
In one Of the rooms a colored woman
lay in bed, apparently in pain. An
other woman told them not to disturb
her but to search as much as they
liked. The invalid was groaning in
agony. On her stomach she held
tightly a rubber water bag. When
the police were unable to find any
dope in the house they decided to
parently sick woman put up a stiff
fight and iris led the police to further
suspect that the water bag held the
dope. They succeeded in getting it
away from her and found that it was
full of drugs OF several kinds tightly
corked up In small walls and that the
bag was then filled with water.
One Of the common ways for the
dope peddler on the street to carry
his wares is In a cigarette box or a
match box. They are always sure to
put one match or one cigarette in II,
and when they see a policeman coming
their way and suspect that he will
search them they take out the match
or cigarette and after lighting it care
lessly toss the box into the street as
# II was empty. This scheme worked
for some time before the police became
aware that the peddlers were getting
rid Of the drugs right under their
noses.
Ingenious Subterfuge.
The dope peddlers also have very
ingenious ways of carrying the dope
in boxes slipped under their sleeve
with devices on them that can re-
lease the drug and permit II to fall
into the street when they get into a
tight corner. Others will secrete the
dope in the cuffs of their trousers
and in hidden pockets in their
clothes.
One of the cleverest dope peddlers
in years was one who Is now serving
a term in the penitentiary. He was
a sleight of hand artist of no mean
ability, and on several occasions went
through thorough search in the
police station after he had been
stripped of his clothes and retained
quantity of dope by palming II
whenever the police got near it. A
sprained finger which he had when
last arrested resulted in his bungling
the palming trick and being sent to