Evening star., 1922-10-12
VAST CRIME WAVE
GRIPPING CANADA
Mounted Police to Battle
Rum Runners Who Have
Turned Bank Robbers.
SLEUTHS MASS ON LINE
Murders Follow Murders and Hold.
Ups Take Place Almost
Unchecked.
SLEUTHS MASS ON LINE
special Dispatch to The Star.

htss ol crime uneaualed in the
hisSry of the Dominion.
ine rum runners" of the United
Htates nave turned to other fields of
criminal endeavor. Bank robberies,
especially of institutions in the
'hiaaer cities and villages, follow
each other with increasing frequency.
murders follow murders and hold-ups
with violence take place almost un-
checked. Bootleggers who ply their
trade by night by day are becoming
oaholts. The result is a feeling of
increasing bitterness against that
Siass OF Americans who are held to
De responsible
omclals of the police and related
n oranches of the Canadian. government
are under pressure to put an end to
al tnls. steps are being taken which
sps spsne.,s expected to rid the border Of all
pa peaa or the mounted; Col. ]. c.
natray, chief of the provincial sys-
EN-. and score of their u. :, .ra ,ed
mssutenants have assumed direct
charge of the grim task of rounding
up and exterminating the criminals.
Residents Panic-Strtcken.
Meanwhile the. residents of the
smaller communities which dot the
boundary and the zone within fast
AUTO ride thereof are panic-stricken.
snahy OF them are afraid to venture
from their homes at nightfall. The
entire Canadian line in the so-called
aerlcultural regions is affected
oHcla!s of the Bank of Montreal,
recognizing that the situation is worse
than ever before, have taken steps to
protect their own and their customers
interests. Orders have been issued,
jackson Dodds. superintendent Of the
western division. said today, to all of
tne smaller branches to transfer their
holdings of victory bonds to the central
points where they will be safe.
Inc members of the royal mounted,
true to the tradition of the service, are
working hard to regain control of the
SITUATION and with good prospects of
shoot to kill where armed bands are
met who try to escape detention and
questioning. All strangers encountered
outside of the cities are to be compelled
TO give an account of themselves.
BOotleGgers Turn Robbers.
Oflcials explain that the existing sit
uatlon is case of one crime begetting
another Originally there was great
wealth in bootlegging as a. single issue.
But the liquor smuggling industry was
taken over by INSCRIPTIONS rich men
ana organized so that the profit Of the
actual runner was materially reduced
The inevitable result was the turning
OF their attention to other fields of en-.
deavor so far as these field men were
concerned. -
Smuggling into Canada was a natural
evolution. Next came the robbery of
the banks and stores in the smaller
towns which have no local police protec-
tion.
The high-powered automobiles used
south fsroy oy tba f.ntTasand ';ns no whisky well
there with silks and other luxuries
which are subject to heavy duties un
DER the Canadian law. These loads
are sent through the customs zone at
oetter than a fty-mile-an-hour gait
and taken to secret rendezvous to re-
| main until the way is clear to send
them to the larger cities. 1t is as
serted here that legitimate dealers
llke nave suffered very severe finaK-
clal loss through competition from
smuggled goods of this character.
Liquor Dealer Slain.
During the last week or so score
or dastardly crimes have been report
ed, starting with the hold-up and
! liquor dealer; He sold cargo Of
liquor for $4,000. While standing. in
the station at Bienfait awaiting a train
he was shot dead by six men, who
| then rlhed his pockets. These men
they had in waiting and overlook the
truck carrying the liquor. taking pos
session of it after robbing and as |
saulting the driver and guard. In a |
number of similar crimes reported |
the robbers are said to have secured
upward OF $50,000 and to have very
seriously injured some of their vic |
! tins.
have been Investigating the increase
of crime that one reason is the run
ming low of the supply of liquor !
available for smuggling. The Cana |
dian authorities lately, have been do |
ing everything possible to assist the |
American revenue men in ending the !
I! illicit traffic.
| I'VE notify the Americans when
ever liquor is released for shipment"
explained ore of the officials today. |
That accounts. we believe, for these
| criminals resorting to their new and |
desperate tactics. Now they are
utilizing their secret information |
channels that are established south |
cerning small banks and the like that |
can easily be robbed.
! Many Have Criminal Records.
Our Investigations show that the |
men engaged in the reign of crime |
reported within the last three or four
weeks have criminal records in the |
| United States, and some of them have |
done time here in Canada. They hold
human life very cheap and shoot to |
kill at a moments notice. Because |
of this we have warned citizens gen.
| orally not to, unless they are dead
| shots. engage thieves, but to leave
them for the mounted What we
fear most Is that a town will be shot
up and men and women killed before we
| can get this latest crime wave under |
!; control
| The authorities are reticent con-
| cerning their plans. AS Supt. knight,
who for more than twenty-five years
| served in the Royal Northwest
Mounted. whose motto is: There is
no such word as fall" put it:
TITS not the way Of the mounted to
talk. We will get these men and