The New York herald., 1922-12-11
Wild NEW KLONDIKE
LURES BOOTLEGGERS
And MOTOR THIEVES
Quebec Border Town Bad as
Old Western Mining
Camps Were.
TRAFFIC VERY HEAVY
Whisky Buys Cars Stolen
in New York or Other
States.
FARMER GETS BIG PROFIT
Canadian Law Affords Little
or No Recourse to Victim
Across Line.
FARMER GETS BIG PROFIT

gpecial Dispatch to THE New York HERALD
VALLEYFIELD, Que, Dec 10.-This
typical French Canadian village has
been transformed in a short time
from quiet. isolated little community
into an important trading post for
American and Canadian bootleggers
and automobile thieves-tlie new
kfondke of, the new rum frontier.
In and around this busy center. con-
veniently north of the New York
State line, are gathered the gunmen
and gangsters of score of American
cities. nest of bad men swapping
their stolen and smuggled automobiles
for rum and rushing back with their
illicit cargoes to the thirsty folk in
the States
Take Valleyfield as the center on
map and draw a semi-circle touching
the st. Lawrence. the State line and
Montreal. In that little area is found
one of the wettest and strangest
spots on the American continent:
little district into which hundreds Of
New York's stolen automobiles are
disappearing and from which large
part of New York's daily highball is
coming; the real market for exchange
of British and French liquors into
American dollars.
Like Old wild West.
It is as distinctive and wild and
dangerous a frontier as any of those
others in earlier days in the West and
its bad men are as bad and bold as
were those distinctive characters who
made up another strange phase in
American life. They are shooting and
fighting and risking lite every hour Of
the day and night In this countryside in
the ceaseless struggle to get out the
booze and beat the law.
Quebec is a wet province end is facing
a political upheaval as a result Of dis
satisfaction with the liquor law. The
public does not like so much Govern
Inent regulation of the business and
wishes to return to commercial sales. A
special election will be held in the early
spring on this subject The American
bootlegger's dollar is becoming the rich
wishes to keep it and the public wants
a share Of II.
AS a byproduct of the rum business
and growing out of the bootlegging has
come the problem of the stolen Sutomo-
bile. 1t is causing lot of trouble and
may be the subject of international dis
cussion at no distant date because of
the dissatisfaction OF the automobile
owner in New York. who Is always the
victim and does not get an even break.
stolen Cars Come Fast.
1t is estimated that two or three
stolen automobiles are crossing the bor-
der between Rouses Point and the st.
Lawrence every night in the week They
are the cars picked up all through the
States, Probably nine out of ten Of
them come from New York State.
Stored in the customs warehouses In
Montreal are sonie 1875 confiscated cars.
These all were stolen in New York, run
across the border by the bootlegger and
sold. Confiscated by the Government
for non-payment Of duty, the cars are
to be resold.
Their rightful owners can get them
back only BY paying the duty. amount
Ing 70 half the value. and buying the
car at the price the Government fixes.
III OlItl WbiuSt tie must pay as n1ucn
as would any other person to get back
his own property. He has no redress.
The Canadian Government backs the op-
Grafton and the American Government
never has done anything about 1t. Prob
ably nothing can be done.
Most of the stolen automobiles are
high priced cars. They are run across
the line and sold for anything the thief
can get Or more likely, the thief is a
bootlegger He has picked up a. car in
the street Of an American city. He
races Il across the State line into Can
ada and trades II with his bootlegger
agent here for cargo of whisky.
Makes on 10th Deals.
Perhaps Il 8 worth $4,000. The thief
trades Il for $500 worth of whisky. That
makes a fairly good nights work. He
gets the liquor into the States and sells
n for 81 500 TO $4,000. which Is all clean
has established fairly lucrative busl-
ness
The local man who buys the car runs
it into an out OF the way place. where
II is hidden for a safe period. perhaps
month or two. Then he brings II out
numbers restnmped. possibly repainted,
and runs II into Montreal or Quebec,
where he sells q for $1,000 TO 81 500.
Government officials say hundi eds of
stolen automobiles this moment are
within radius Of fifty miles of Valley
field IL Is believed that n large part
of the trading Is done In this vicinity.
Buried under hay. concealed in straw
stacks. hidden In woods--anywhere and
everywhere that Is conceivable. the
stolen cars are tucked away The
officials are finding them constantly but
do not make an organized raid or barns.
Along the less freauented highways from
the border north for forty miles are the
stolen cars. The New York man has not
n chance. not ono in hundred of re-
covering his automobile unless he comes
rcre and fnls IL himself. IL is almost
a waste OF time to notify the police. The
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