Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1922-04-28
ANCLESEA men DETAINED
From the Philadelphia 1nquirer.>

(From the Philadelphia Inqulrer.1
The auxiliary schooner Commando,
under command of Captain Theodore
Riddle and a crew of three men, hail
ing from Anglesea, N. j., was seized
by Captain Samuel Holdzkom, COM
mander of the Longport station OF the
Federal Coast Guards, late Monday at
ternoon, April oath, on suspicion OF
being engaged in the liquor smuggling
trade. A quantity of liquor was
hurled overheard by the crew OF the
schooner when they saw they could
not avoid capture, according to Cap
tain Holdzkom.
The chase and final capture OF the
ffteen-ton schooner was n of the
liveliest in the history of the local
coast guards. Hearing that the Com
manche had refused to stop when
hailed while passing over the bar be-
tween Ocean City and Longport, Cap
tain Holdzkom became suspicious and
followed the craft with his sea glasses
until she passed into the tortuous
channels of the inland waterway and
headed toward Atlantic City.
Communicating IN automobile from
a Longport resident the captain, to-
gether with eight members of h
Longport Coast Guard Station, dashed
towards Ventnor in an effort to head
off the schooner at the bridge at Dor
set avenue. He and his men arrived
there Just before the craft came
abreast. The schooner captain, seeing
him and paying no attention to the
Federal officials command to halt and
permit them to come aboard, swung
about his craft in the narrow channel
and headed back whence he had come.
Resume Chase in Boat
Again the Coast Guards piled into
their automobile and ran swiftly back
to Longport. Here they embarked in
a power-boat and, equipping them
selves with wicked-looking service re-
volvers, took up the chase again. The
swift power-boat soon began to over
haul the schooner. Then a shot was
fired by the Coast Guards across the
bow of the craft, bringing about sud-
den activity on the part of the crew.
Captain Holdzkom declares that nu-
merous bags and boxes were thrown
overheard, sinking quickly.
Realizing that the chase was about
over, the schooner swung about and
let her anchor go. Captain Holdzkom
and his crew, with guns swinging from
their hips, quickly clamored aboard
and searched the craft from stem to
stern, but not a trace of whiskey or any
other anti-Volstead beverage could be
found. The schooner was then taken
to a wharf near the coast guard sta
tion and placed under guard.
Captain Riddle, of the schooner, and
the three members of his crew, Hurley
Boyd, Walter Hewitt and Walter Hew-
lit, Jr,, all of Anglesea, were taken
under guard to the station and then
informed they would be held until an
investigation had been completed. To
make sure that lone of the captives
made an escape, armed guards were
placed on watch.
viii Grapple for Bags
There has been no charge made
against either the schooner or the
crew." said Captain Holdzkom. How,
ever, I haven't the slightest doub'
that it was liquor we saw them throw.
ing overheard. We know where the
bags and boxes were sunk and we are
going to grapple for them. 1t is my
opinion that the Commanche picked
UP her load of booze from a large shiI
at sea and was attempting to run i
into Atlantic City when we CAV.
chase"
He stated that he had questioned
Captain Riddle and the members of tn,
crew, but all of them had refused tt
tell what the schooner was doing Their,
or to discuss their peculiar action il
throwing into the water the bags an(
boxes.
The Commanche is a two-mastet
schooner of about fifteen tons burden
and calls Anglesea her home port
She had been in the fishing trade fol
a number of years and is well known
to the coast guards and fishermen o
this section. Who her present owners
are could not be learned.