San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-10-07
SECOND BAT TIE.
OF bLACKJACKS
NOW HISTORY.
Soldiers Run Down in Car
With "Cold Ones" in
the Back.
SEVEN MAKE ATTACK
Airplane Aids in Locating
"Still" Which Proves
to Be a Windmill.

The second "battle of the black
Hjacksv fought by prohibition enforce
Il ment officers. military police ant
4 deputy sheriffs to the number Of
+ seven, in the Positas district some >;
( miles south of San Antonio Satur
day afternoon resulted in the capture
of four men claiming to be soldiers
and one lonely bottle of beer. The still
which it had been hoped to capture
and which prohibition enforcement of
ficers and military police believed was
furnishing local army camps with
their "moonshine" proved to be the
lowly tent of a cattle herder.
The "battle," however. while it
lasted, was one of the "fiercest" of
many months and compared only with
one fought by Prohibition Enforce
ment Officer Charles Stevens and
deputy sheriffs in the blackjacks
about year ago. In that battle real
/. bullets were exchanged. In Saturday s
battle, however, the only ammunition
was "sand burs," "bull nettles," deep
sand and hickory nuts. The latter
were exceedingly plentiful. The seven
officers and one newspaper man re-
turned to waiting automobiles after q
eight inches deep a weary, disappoint-
ed and wiser bunch.
They Find the Beer.
The four men captured by the Off
GERS were taken into custody on the
return trip to town. One of the au-
tomobiles carrying the officers stalled
on the road just few miles beyond
Losoya. The leading car stopped to
Sn1I p
:. shot past and as it did so. the pro-
hibition enforcement officer in the
rear car yelled "stop EN-" Deputy
Sheriff +. n. Flores driving the lead
car, gave FER the gas" and shot out
in pursuit.
The smaller car containing four
men sped on its way and owing to
the narrowness of the road Deputy
Flores was unable to get by it at first.
When he finally succeeded, he or
dered the driver of the car to halt.
He was answered with a burst of
speed from the other car and a splin-
tering of glass as beer bottles hit the
roadside.
stop or I'll shoot" came from
Deputy Flores as he held his steering
wheel with one hand and loaded his
1920 rifle with the other. aiming the
rifle in the direction of the car. There
was grinding of brakes and the car
came-to halt. One officer ransacked
it and found "cold one" under tho
rear seat. wrapped in n STOW sack"
They Approach the Scene.
ave found about dozen buried in
ice up the road and we stole them.
was tie explanation offered by the
driver of the car. Il told those boys
not to try TO bring any with us and
this is what we get"
The prohibition enforcement Off
GERS didn't accept the youths version
of the acquisition of the beer and
brought car and all to town. They had
made too long ride and walked
through too much sand to come back
empty. handed.
But back TO the battle of the black.
jacks. a general prohibition enforce
ment officer had gone up in an air
plane and scanned the black jack
country to the south. 1t was in this
country that officers made n big raid
a year ago and where some fighting
took place. This general officer and
tie pilot of the plane discovered a
tent, partially concealed in a clumr
OF black jacks. Nearby was wind.
mill. "A tent and water: must be
STILL" was the immediate conclusion
of the officers.
They Move to Attack.
The pilot of the plane had carefully
mapped the country and later went
out iii an automobile and searched out
the road. Saturday he. with military
police. prohibition officers and ona
deputy sheriff for good measure. start
ed out for the raid. Speculation as to
whether it would be water haul
was INDUCED in during the drive. but
officers really believed they were If
for "big find"
After ploughing through deem sand.
a pasture gate was reached and this
was thought to be the entrance to the
"moonshine belt" One car contain
ing four of the officers stalled about
three-quarters of a mile back and the
men had 10 walk. All gathered, rifles
were unslung, coats discarded and the
"attack" begun.
Scribe Guards the Rear.
Passing through the gate. the seven
deployed III open formation with the
newspaper man well to the rear,
whether as rear guard" or for pur
poses OF safety could not be learned
lie was armed with handful of hick
DRY nuts.
Ploughing through about n mile and
half of deep sand and sand burs
the attacking party finally came to a
clearing where stood windmill and
weather beaten tent. Standing i'm
front Of the tent, saddled and bridfer
was flea bitten horse.
Perched on top of the windmill, eyi.
IDENTIFY engaged in repair work. was mr.
aged Mexican. He seemed unde.
cided whether to face the battery of
-30-30's' from the air or the ground.
Finally. however, he descended when
two hound dogs put down a barking
harrage on the officers. He an
preached the tent where the officers
had gathered. evidently at a loss to
understand their presence.
jug of 'Lasses.
Deputy Flores. as spokesman de.
{. manded to know where the still was.
The Mexican didn't understand at
first but when he finally saw the light
be denier vociferously any knowledge
Of a still. re produced from his tent
gallon JUG containing molasses or
kerosene. No still was in evidence
The officeTS with a grunt of DISGUST.
departed toward their ears with q
parting remark that IF there 'aint n
ffiu here. there ought 10 be; that's
ali that rofrfH ~ rrea1 Ihra