Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1921-12-21
THE TRAIL OF THE WHITE MULE
BY Frederic J. Haskin

Not only coon hunters. but many
others whose business takes them into
the sparseiy settled sections, have
found this out. The work of All sorts
Of Government field officers. has been
crippled by the suspicious attitude II
the natives. Thus the Biological Sur
vey, in its work Of trapping predatory
animals, finds that fts first and mos.
difficult task in a given region n 10
convince the natives that the trappers
are not looking for stills. The Veter-
ans Bureau in It's roundup of m, n
who were entitled 10 compensation.
met the same obstacle.
The stills seem 10 have first multi
piled within the mountain sections.
and then to have slowly crept down
into the valleys near the cities. There
have always been n few nOOnshine
stills in the Blue Ridge Mountains
near Washington, but now there are
n hundred in the woods along the
Potomac River for every one that was
hidden In the mountains 10 years ago.
The men who operate these stills are
for the most part Of the mountain type.
IL seems to be literally true that the
Imountaineer Of romance has come
down from his wooded heights bring
ing his art Of liquor-making with
him.
Rise 0f the Mounfaineer.
And In coming down physically he
has gone up socially and financially.
That lean, hawk-nosed, soc<iess man
has become prosperous fellow with
a good car and a bank account. Many
a mountain boy and girl is getting
better education and better food and
clothes by reason Of prohibition. There
are no more staunch supporters ~
prohibition than these artists q the
White Mule. II has been a boon 20
them. They are back Of the Anti-Sa-
iooI League 20 a man.
There are risks OF course, but they
cannot be great. In the cities the po-
lice frequently arrest bootieggers. but
in the wild rural neighborhoods. where
! White Mule is made. the local officers
2 are seldom hostile. In fact, Il s. not
? unusual 10 find the sheriff a part own
r er OF a stiil and the local stotekeeper
{ supplying the sugar for share Of the
profit. and in some cases even the
2 preacher has been known 70 psrtake
s los the lsbors and the profits of the
Q borhood is pretty sure 70 be IN cshoots
. and the way Of the stranger there "A
a apt 70 be hard. II was published not
n llong ago that the prohibition enforce
o ment department was sending a hun
lcred men i,ito the Appalachian regior
=, to comb out the stills" Probably a
thousand could not have done ths
. job.
Meantime the market for the pro-
a, duct steadily widens. II has always
!. been used largely in the southerr
cities. such az Chattanooga and Bir
mingham, and the moonshiners founs
q ready market in those. places a.
soon as prohibition went into effect
I" Washington has also been stead
user Of White Mule for a long time
j. New York, it is said. Ia just beginninl
IT to acquire a taste for IL. but the mar
d ket there is growing, despite the com
2. petition Of imported stuff. Moreover
o white corn whiskey, while a terrihl
/ thing at its worst, is by no means IN
II palatable at its best. There IL no rea
= son why the moonshiner's field of ac
3 tivity should not widen, as he learn
n how 70 cater 10 the better trade.
s. Perhaps next this infant industr
e will have its lobby in Washington, an
= will cooperate with the Anti-Saloo
ID League for legislation to prevent n
n importation of liquor. White Mule
10 100 per cent American, so il must b
good.