The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1921-01-29

are still found large quantities Oh
booze; people are still getting drunk;
the officers are kept busy apprehen-
ding those who have intoxicating
liquor in their possession; the jail is
often occupied by persons held on
liquor charges.
Where does all this booze come
from and how does it get into Ste
vens county? There are three chief
sources of booze in Stevens county.
First, there is the Canadian booze
which comes across the long border
line in many different ways; second,
there is the moonshine which is man.
ufactured in the hills and in the
homes; third, there is the American
booze which has been stored (per-
haps for advance in prices). Any
way it has been stored.
A reason which has been assigned
for so much whiskey coming across
the border from the Canadian side,
is the inefficiency of the inspection
system, due to a totally inadequate
number of inspectors. 1t has been
estimated that it would take one man
"a hours to properly inspect every
train that comes across the border
and at Laurier there are two passen-
ger and two freight trains. passing
daily.
People in all walks of life have
been experimenting with corn meal,
tobacco juice, raisins, lemons, sugar
and yeast, and have developed, not
exactly what they want, but some-
thing which kicks, anyway. All of
these miscellaneous mixtures have
been termed "moonshine" and this is
the second source of booze in Stevens
county.
Of course there are other sources.
Some liquor is brought in from Spo
kane county and some from other
counties.
All the liquor found by the author
tiles is confscated and is subject to
disposal by order of the court, con-
trary to a possible belief that the
officials and their friends drink all
this booze. The liquor taken at
Springdale shortly after Christmas
was poured out at the place found.
100 gallons of moonshine from a
big still found near Chewelah was
poured out at one time. The Can
adian whiskey which was found not
long ago beneath a load of poles,
was taken charge of by government
officials and enough loaned to Ste
vens county for evidence. When a
still is found the mash is destroyed
at the place found and the still
brought in for evidence and later
destroyed.
Moonshine (on account of its uncer-
tain, conglomerate mixture of in
gradients, perhaps), when brought to
the county seat, after being used for
evidence, is often, by order of the
court, poured into the sink in the
jail kitchen. (Note: 1t has been
suggested that if this becomes
known, certain citizens will undoubt-
edly hunt out the end of the sewer
system or mob the jail.)
When American booze, or Cana
dian booze not too greatly diluted,
makes it's appearance at the county
seat in care of the authorities, the
superior court orders it delivered at
the hospital for medical purposes
only. (Another note: 1t is feared
by some that if this fact is published
the hospital will be overrun with
patients.)
Speaking of liquor in care of the
county officials, there is, in vault
at the Stevens county courthouse,
Fi1 licker," a "li'l red licker," in
fact a quart of it. For eight or ten
years county officials have proven
to be men of strong character, by
reason of this little quart bottle in
the vault. o. w. Noble, prosecuting
attorney, has let it alone because
his predecessor L. B. Donley did not
get away with it, reasoning logically
that if Donley did not touch it,
there must be some good and suf-
ficient reason. l.. B. Donley states
in regard to his abstinence that as
his illustrious predecessors and other
county officials such as John b.
Slater and l.. E. Jesseph and others
did not get away with it, it certainly
would be the height of folly for him
to touch it and accordingly he left
the quart of "red licker" in the
vault. In speaking of his strength
of character in so doing, he men
toned that at one time there were
two of these bottles in the vault,
one with ants in it and one without,
but someone, unknown to anyone now
able to testify, got away with the
bottle without the ants and there
still remains to this day the quart
of "red Ticker" in the vault at the