The New York herald., 1921-08-22

pire's most prosperous colony. and this
condition. according to the same utterly
candid reports. is due entirely to
American prohibition. And this pros
perity was forced upon the Bahamas.
The American distillers were told that
they had until January 16. 1920, TO
export their stocks. Some went to
Canada. but the shadow OF prohibition
was creeping over the Dominion and
the liquor men looked further. Ber-
muda offered no inducements. To carry
it to Cuba was to lug coal to West
Virginia. The cataract fell upon un-
expected Nassau. The little town was
deluged. The Government. quick to see
salvation. threw together improvised
warehouses: business offices became
storage rooms. and lawyers. real estate
operators. exporters and what not re-
ceived more for ren.als than they ever
had earned in their professions and
businesses.
| Biminfs star Is Dimmed.
Families occupying five and six room
houses for which they paid S12. SIS and
$50 month rent II. by chance. they did
not own them. found that they could
| live comfortably in two rooms. The cell
! lars and the vacated rooms were
promptly jammed full OF American
| liquor FOR which storage space $50 to
| 800 a month was willingly paid. Rents
doubled tripled and quadruplcd Infia-
tion had reached Nassau tardiiy but
completely.
The astonished native women who had
rejoiced In q shilling a day wedding
1rte Iaft tINa falA dc 70 frlR n
and 81 a day rolling barrels OF rum
through the streets singing:
NANNY don't want no peas, no rice, n
cocoanut oil:
J All she want is sugar candy"
/ And
Il want to go to Abaco.
Do ma, do ma.
Abaco is a pretty place.
DO ma, do ma"
And then the rise of Bmini. a tale
that needs no retelling. On that hitherto
attractionless isle there arose the fine
Bimini Bay Rod and Gun Club. built b.
Americans who desired TO do their drink
ing In luxury and which was just as
much devoted TO the art OF the rod and
gun as the Horizontal Bar Athletic As
sociation was to physical culture In Chi
cago during political convention
OF 1920. Songs we're written OF Bimini
and they still tell stories Of the men and
women who used to pay aviators SIS
each o day just to be whlsked from
Miami 70 the Bimini Bay club Tor
luncheon.
The downfall OF Bimini was rapid
Too much advertising ruined IL. Finally
one Of its leading citizens. Charles Vim
cent?. was Kidnapped by Mervin s.
Brobst, then In the United States Secret
Service and now q lawyer in Miami.
Bimini and its Rod and Gun Club suf-
fered decline and to-day Is little more
than hilarious memory. Gun Cay and
Grand Bahama have supplanted Bimini
and II is from the latter that our mys-
terry ships proceed. Mystery ships?
Listen TO the Bahamas laugh
Liquor Tramc u Orderly.
But there were no nys,ery ships those
days. Smuggling was csrricd on by the
small power boats that dLrcgardcd the
great rislts ertaned IL crcaaiHg tic Gulf
Stream IL their fifty mile rIn 70 Florida
Motor cars choked tie Dsx4e Highway
carrying tho smuggleG stun North.
These little vessels. under nshlng or
pleasure craft licenses. required no
papers. Their owners and crews grew
rich until the sea and the authorities,
tho latter not yet adjusted 10 conditions,
reduced their numbers
The business grew and becaue or
ganl2ed. Bimini mad been "a rendezvous
nothing more. Bootlegging from
Bimini had been a touch and 10 propo-
sition conducted on a cut-throat ba sic.
and attended by sudden death aa we'll
as sudden wealth. Ii was the incl
dental crime and the mobilization OF
professional criminals that caused both
the Florida and the Bahaman authori-
ties Go choke of the Bimini orgy.
There arose, then, n better order OF
things Laws were 10 be observed.
men made amenable to organization.
Such business houses In Nassau as
those Of Plnder. Collins e. Brown: Bruce
Thompson. Charles Ernest Bethel.
Hamilton Ellis Burnside. MACPHERSON,
George w. Armbrister. Ralph Elldry.
Harold f. NJ. johnson. and so on, came
to something like mutual understand
ing.
They began exporting large stocks
Continued on Fifth Pdoc