The Omaha morning bee. [volume] (Omaha [Neb.]) 1922-1927, 1923-01-12

LiS, Smugglers Suffer
Casualties in Attempt to
Land Cargoes at At
lantic Coast Points.
Haul Totals 1000 Cases

New York, Jan. 11.-tBy \. P)--
The swarm Of rum running craft
which today sought. by sheer strength
OF numbers, to overwhelm the pro.
hibition navy with its newly-acquired
gun-toting flagship, Lexington, to.
night suffered its first Casualty" ac-
corling to observers at Sandy Hook,
who reported that the launch Mar
garet b, laden to the gunwhales with
whisky, was captured by a coast
guard crew.
Almost simultaneously three other
vessels OF the rum fleet were reported
to have been seized by coast guard
craft off Ambrose Channel lightship.
The quadruple haul totaled 1000
cases.
Besides the Margaret E., officials
said they had confiscated the Evelyn,
25-foot sea skiff, an unnamed launch
and rum runners scout boat, all of
which were believed to have been
owned in Highland. N. j.
Fleet Drops Anchor.
A fleet Of two steamers and IA
schooners dropped anchor of Sandy
Hook and Immediately a swarm of
small craft put off from shore to
meet them. Tonight they were racing
to cover with their booty, pursued by
every speed boat the dry navy
could muster.
Observers ashore who professed in
tit,,a 70 In -
trade estimated that each of the small
craft, II 1t succeeded In running the
gauntlet, would deposit a cargo of rs
to 500 cases at some cove along the
Jersey or Long Island shores. The
value Of the liquor aboard the mother
ships was roughly estimated in the
millions. il each carrier was loaded to
capacity.
The smugglers' latest offensive evil
IDENTIFY caught directors of dry navy"
unawares. John d. Appleby, marine
prohibition director in this zone, has
tily went into conference with E. c.
Yellowley, state federal enforcement
agent, and a plan Of campaign was
whipped together.
Cut OFF Small Craft.
At first is was decided to dispatch
a flotilla from New York to seize the
mother ships, but later this plan was
changed. Instead, radio orders We're
flashed to dry" vessels on patrol duty
to watch all possible landing points
and cut off the small craft from reach
ing their shore bases.
Two factors were in the rum run
ners' favor. One was that the New
York dry naval squadron at pres
ent was being reorganized. with the
Hansen transferred to Baltimore. The
other was the fine weather following
the gales that have ragged off the
coast.
Unless they were advised through
underground channels that armed
cruisers were being sent out for rum
runners, the smugglers went about
their work with feeling of compara-
tive safety, for only in this afternoon
papers was the news published that
the Lexington had been put into com.
mission.
Rum Boats Assemble.
Observers at Sandy Hook and At
lantic Highlands noticed an undue
congestion off shore on the waters
over which the international cup
races had been run in 1920. Soon the
course took on 4 race day appearance,
so many craft, big and little, mad as.
sembled.
Two good sized steamers-one ap-
rarently tanker--arived first, ac-
companied by more than dozen sail
ing craft which APPARENTLY had been
converted from fishing smacks into
rum runners.
The welcoming fleet that put off
was formidable in more than mere
numbers. There were powerful gaso-
lire cruising yachts, fleet craft of the
famous Seabright sea-skiff model.
capable of making 20 knots or more,
and nondescript launches with swift