The New York herald., 1922-08-06
$4,000 LIQUOR DUG
OUT OF ships BILGE
Dry Agents Find Ingenious
Pipe OH Clyde Liner, Here
From Halifax.
ABOUT TO END SEARCH
Inspector Lowered Into
Tank Comes Across Bot
ties in Burlap Bags.
BIG RUM RUNNER ESCAPES
Pirates Off 3 Mile Limit Said
to Be Holding Up Whisky
Laden Vessels.


after the sloop Minnie Wallace, which
is alleged to have supplied the launch
captured early Friday by police in the
.Narrows, and the announcement that
whisky pirates are active off the New
Jersey and Long Island coasts con-
stituted the developments yesterday
in the war of the customs service and
the Dry Navy on the deep sea boot
logger.
The Vague arrived Friday in ballast
from Halifax, although her usual
course is between here and Santo Do
mingo. William r. Sanders, deputy
surveyor, said he long has had the
vessel under suspicion and that on the
two or three occasions she previously
had been searched. liquor was found
on each occasion. He consequently
sent four of his men under command
of Inspector Hokensen to search the
vessel again. She was gone over thor
oughly at the foot of Nineteenth street,
Brooklyn, and the inspectors were
about to leave when the booze cargo
was discovered.
Mr.. Sanders said he and his men
prided themselves on knowing the con-
struction of the Vague, but that on their
previous visits they had overlooked
tank line arrangement in the bilges.
This was discovered as the inspectors
were about to leave the vessel. 1t was
decided to look into the tank.
The cover was lifted and one of the
inspectors was lowered into IL. He
shouted up a moment later that 1t was
full of musty burap bags and that each
bag contained anywhere from one to
six quarts of liquor. The work of re-
moving the contraband was begun and
5000 bottles had been lifted out of the
tanks before the inspector announced
X was empty.
The rumchascr Larsen of the dry
navy, which has been cruising off the
coast since the yacht Onward, and the
sloops Iowa and Mathilda were sighted
early Thursday. sent a wireless message
early yesterday that the Minnie Wallace.
queen OF the rum fleet operating from
Nassau, was within the twelve mile GUS
toms limit off the New Jersey coast.
The skipper of the Larsen announced
he was making for the point at which
the Minnie Wallace was supposed to be
and suggested that Capt George Tawes.
commander of the chaser Hahn. be in
readiness to join him II needed.
Customs officials misinterpreted mes
sages received later from the Larsen
as meaning that she had caught up with
and seized the Minnie Wallace. whose
engines were dead and that the vessel
would have to be towed into port. The
Hahn was about TO start for the loca-
ton mentioned in the message, knowing
that the Larsen did not have the equip
ment to tow the ship, when a second
message was received which said that
the Larsen had not been able to find
the Minnie Wallace. Just how the con-
fusion in the messages occurred was
not explained. 1t was suggested that
the rum runner, which is supposed to
be equipped with wireless. may have in
tercepted the messages and to have sent
one which gave the authorities false
steer.
Presence of the rum running fleet off
the coast was the subject OF confer
enco between Acting Collector of the
Port Stuart and John ID. Appleby. pro-
hibition zone officer and admiral OF
the dry navy. At this discussion II
was brought out that a launch known
as the Captain, which is said to be the
most elusive liquor craft operating In
Atlantic waters, has appeared off the
coast in this vicinity.
Capt. Tawes of the Hahn and Capt
d. S. Mcdonald of the rum chaser Tay-
Tor said the presence of this vessel has
been reported to them off and on for the
last week. Their information came from
the shippers Of smuggling craft that had
been victimized by the crew of the Cap
tain. who are little short OF pirates. The
Captain was described 10 Capts. Tawes
and Mcdonald as being very fast
gasoline boat" of about 60 feet in
length with crew OF eight men.
HoIdup of Liquor Shin.
One story told to the dry navy skip
pers was that "A rum runner lying at
anchor outside the twelve mile limit was
approached by the Captain which pulled
alongside. the commander OF the pirate
craft inquiring whether the other vessel
had any whisky for sale. The pirate
commander boarded the runner, and
displaying a large roll of bills. bargained
for 200 cases OF Scotch at "A price that
would make Broadway bootlegSer
cnvious. The deal apparently was set
tied and tho actual transfer OF the
whiskoy was completed, whereupon the
pirate skipper thrust his roll" back
into his pocket and jumped back into
his launch.
Members of the rum running crew
tfico TO prevent the deep sea holdup and
found themselves looking into the muz-
zlcs OF eight automatics.
Capts. Tawcs and Mcdonald said that
on virtually every trip they have made
out into the deep they have come upon
one or more suspected rum smuggling
craft. All these have been beyond the
customs limit, however. and have there
fore been free from visit and search.
'rhc shippers Of some OF tho craft have
invited the dry agents to go aboard
and have drinks.
Others. described by the captains ~
being of the hard boiled variety.
break the neck off bottle or whisky
aAad stand by the rail drinking tho liquor
- vcase the agents ana customs mon.
Tho commanders Of some Of the smur-
Cling vessels have told the authorities
that they carry Kegs OF beer to prevent
the crew from breaking into the cargo
OF booze.
During the day hours the smuggIcrs
have signaling system BY which thev
notify one another or tho presence OF
the rum chasers. At night the smug-
glers set off rockets as soon as the
chug-chng Of the dry navy boats is
hoard
Thomas w. whittle, Surveyor, ex-