Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-11-27
RUM SHIP SEIZURE
Continued from Page one)

! N. j., while flying the British flag,
was seized with the knowledge that
| her registry papers We're faulty and
| that she positively had been identi-
| fled with the landing of liquor OH
| American shores, government agents
announced today.
"Rummy Bill Mccoy, rum SNUG
gler king, John Brophy. alias Dow
| ney, her skipper and seven members
of the Tomako's crew were arraign-
| ed before a federal commissioner
here charged with illegally trans
1 oprting liquor into the United states.
They were released in $1,000 bail
each pending proceedings in which
the authorities of New Jersey will
seek their removal for trial there on
the charge.
Mccoy also appeared in fed
eral court in Brooklyn to plead
not guilty to an Indictment
Charging illegal liquor trans
portation while he WAS aboard
the schooner Henry Marshall. the
first ship of British registry TO be
seized outside the three mile limit
on rum carrying charges. In this
case he was released in $10,OOO ball
which he furnished in cash from
mana Dag POCsOOVs NHN6NN
to be receipts from the sale Of wills.
kew to runners off the New Jersey
coast. The Tomako originally was
the American schooner Arethusa and
under this name she appeared in
January 1921, the first rum carrier or
the American dry era. Her shining
white sides and yellow sticks have
been sought by government lookouts
along the entire Atlantic coastline
since that time, for she was known
as the most adventurous little rum
devil" in the business. She is charged
with having carried rum to all points
along the coast from Portland down
to Florida.
There came a time when the Hen
nv Marshall appeared and the Mar
shall and the Arethusa were said to
have ben rum carrying mates until
the Marshall fell into the hands of
the government off Atlantic City.
After the loss of the Marshall Mccoy
is said to have arranged for the pur-
chase of the Arethusa. caused her to
be placed under British registry and
a cabin fitted out for himself. This
purchase and transfer of registry,
government officials said. was re-
ported to be illegal and they believed
the Tomako still to be an American
boat.
Many conflicting reports of details
of the capture of thevTomako were
heard al. different government offices.
Assistant Collector of the Port Barn.
es said the official report of the coast
! guards declared that Lieutenant l..
w. Perkins, the boarding officer, had
been threatened with machine guns
which then were turned on the coast
guard cutters Seneca and Lexington.
This, it was said, came after Lieuten-
ant Perkins had been put aboard the
schooner to bring her to shore and
Mccoy had given orders to run to
sea. Another report had it that a
machine gun and an automatic rifle
were displayed but not fired.
Mccoy denied that firearms were
on board, or that there ever had
been on his ships, although coast
guard officials reported that the To-
mako had fired on government boats
| in other chases.
"Why, I'd be a fool to permit any
shootinS at government boat,
wouldn't II" said Mccoy. MY idea
all along has been to operate within
| the law. which to me means, outside
| the three mile limit without any dis
play of arms. When I had the Mar
shall the crew were a bunch of bad
men and the captain was a cheater.
If they had conducted themselves
properly there wouldn't b any indict-
mnts against me.
1--WE got a bully good crew now
and it can't be said that the Tomako
isn't a good rum ship, minding her
own business and treating everybody
right. I've been on the sea all my
life, ever since left my home in
Syracuse to go in training for the
sea on the old training ship Sara
toga.
MY buddy on the Saratoga was
Herbert Hartley. now skipper of the
Leviathan. Both of us went into the
merchant marine at the same time