Evening star., 1922-04-23
BY HAROLD b. DOBBS.
illustrated By Herb Roth.

illustrated By Herb Roth.
RY1NG to stop the flow of all
kinds of liquor into the
eastern cities may be COM
pared to Hercules task of
cleaning out the Augean stables or to
an attempt to bale out the Potomac
river with q thimble. 1t really can't be
done. Not il the whole American Army
and Navy were mustered into the
service of the prohibition department.
Continuous service under eight pro-
hibition directors and supervising
agents has proved to my satisfaction
that bootlegying will continue as long
as America or the American people
exist.
Every man or woman in the country
who drinks is a potential bootlegger.
BY this l do not wish to convey the
impression that all such persons
would engage In this game Of break
ing the eighteenth amendment to our
Constitution. But one who drinks for
aiding and abettlng the bootlegger.
So many avenues for the entrance of
liquor into the cities exist and so
many persons in all walks of life.
from the banker to the ragpicker. are
directly or indirectly engaged in
bootlegging. or interested in it from
a monetary point OF view. that it has
been my experience that whenever We
would stop the activities Of one group
nve would spring up in tbs place.
IRON United States bonded ware
L houses. from private stills. large
and small, from incoming transatlan-
tic liners. freighters. coastwise pas
hand satchels, harbor tugs, small river
and harbor craft. a continuous stream
OF contraband whisky. rye and bour-
bon. champagne, wines, brandy. gin
and every conceivable drink known
to Americans before the law went into
effect is pouring into New York and
other cities.
Can the small force of federal agents
ever expect to cope with individual
or organizations SO universally active
as the average man or woman out to
make handsome profit on one bottle.
a case or q thousand cases of liquor.
There must be tens OF thousnds of
bootleggers in all parts Of America.
This large army Of lawbreakers is
augmented by certain elements in the
horde Of foreign seamen who touch
our shores in ships. There is hardly
a vessel that enters the port of New
York, large or small, coastwise or by
canal or river. that does not bring
some liquor. I do not say that the
owners Of tho vessels have cogni-
xance Of this traffic. But there are
nearly always some persons aboard
who have.
Then again, lured by the high prices
obtainable for all kinds of alcoholic
beverages, there have sprung up in
Europe bands of men who manufac-
ture the we'll known and popular
drinks at a figure much less than they
could purchase them for abroad. Well
organized groups secure passage on
liners plying across the Atlantic,
whether they be members of the crew,
officers or passengers. and make a
safe delivery in New York. There are
plenty of willing hands here to re-
csive the contraband. The psychology
Of the word imported" on anything,
whether it be q doll or a bottle Of
Scotch, il such that high prices are
paid by Americans for imports thus
designated.
A great deal Of American whisky
was shipped out Of New York before
the law went into effect. 1t is still
being shipped out now and then
brought back surreptitiously. 1t is
much easier for smugglers to get
whisky back into America from a
foreign port than 1t is to get 1t out
Of bonded warehouses here. The re-
suit has been that millions Of gallons
Of our own distilled ryes and bour-
bons have gone to a nearby foreign
warehouse.
Until a few months ago 1t was not
necessary for vessel coming into
this port with a cargo of liquor con-
signed to an American importer to
get permission from the prohibition
department to deliver 1t. The cargo
passed the customs. duty was paid
and it went direct to the importers
warehouse.
4 4 Il X
NOW q new regulation has been is
~ sued by the Treasury Department
compelling all importations Of liquor
to pass through the ofice of the pro-
hibition department.. This will have
little effect. II any. in stopping the
fiow. It will only serve to incite the
bootlegger to devise other ways and
means to beat the government
Only recently shipment Of 1000
cases Of Scotch whisky. valued at
SLOT, ,ooe, was seized on board q steam
or hailins from Canadian port. It
was hidden in the crews quarters.