Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1923-07-10
FLORIDA IS FOUND
BOOTLEG PARADISE
Whisky Brought Through
Customs at Miami. Investi-
gator Declares.
ny the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
; CHICAGO, July 10--Rum running
along the south Atlantic ssaboard
has assumed such tremendous pro-
portions that the inhabitants of pow
erty-stricken little islands have be-
come rich almost over night, and the
Section has become known as boot
1eggers paradise" the Chicago Daily
News said toda. in a copyrighted
article describing conditions along
the Florida coast.
: In the Bahamas, from the city Of
Nassau alone, the article said, official
clearings OF liquor bound for the
United States increased from 1881
gallons in 1917 to 1,340,443 gallons in
1922. The writer. accompanied by a
hootlegger named Terry" as guide.
gold of visiting the rum fleets, talk
ing with the 1um runners, helping
transport the liquor and of distribute
ing it in the United States.
Ask Any One in Miami.
s. Miami, first stop OF the investi-
gators, was described as n city
where, if you feel the need of a drink
and don't happen to have your own
flask with you. all you need to do is
wait in the shade of a palm tree until
q resident comes along, ask him
where you can find a bootlegger, and,
IF he isn't one himself. he will tell
you where to go. You can buy all
the whisky you want in Miami at
IS quart.
Havana and Nassau were described
as but two of the ports that were
a NtDf
liquor, some of 1T from American dis
: Upon the payment of the proper
amount of graft" the writer said,
"you can clear out of n port with
thousands of cases of whisky billed
to a legitimate point, unload IL on
the American coast, SAIL INTO the
aforesaid legitimate port with an
tificate showing that you arrived there
with the very whisky you smuggied
into the United States.
Brought 1t In Boldly.
Tn the course of our participation
In this business on the Atlantic
coast" the writer continued, Terry
and bought booze in Havana,
brought 1t through the customs at
Key West and sent it to friends In
Chicago through the United states
mails. We bought other booze in
Nassau and landed it in Miami at the
Municipal pier"
"And when we were ready to re-
turn to Chicago the article de-
rlared. 1--WE left the Florida coast In
a bootleggers' motor boat. met any
boarded a rum schooner loaded Win
1000 cases of Scotch whisky, rode
this ship to the New Jersey coast
Bought ten cases from tne captain.
landed it along with zoo other Gas rs
Newark, packed il into trunks ana
shipped it to Chicago: and SOLO II
To Terry's customers. Nobody inter.
fered with US or ques9lo,heo U.s. IL
was all in the days WORK
Big Gain in Revenue.
The Bahamas, poverty stricken be-
fore prohibition and with revenues
from all sources CT less than halt
na,,I,on dollars, realized s2,7sS,ooo IN
1922 in duties from liquor shipped
TITO the United. States, the articie
aid quoting a Nassau official VINO
added that, estimating the 1.34o44S
salons of liquor cleared from the
pohamas for the United States was
diIuted so per cent, more than l,ooo,.
non gallons of liquor were piaceu on
the market in this country froih 'ho
Bahamas alone. ao This
h,,siness the writer said, are sore
because London and Glasgow re
sending booze to America, oo,oou ~
40 600 cases at time, IN o!sseI u'
shins than the Bahamas ever dream
ed of before, and they nave maze
aome strange dreams come true In
While prohibition officers are se1z-
ing sealed liquor brought into tnelr
hands by legitimate ocean-goins
Vessels. the article said, there are pu.
rwo small cutters to guard the l'zuo
miles of Florida coast. ali maue 10
order for rum running.
Calls Cutters Ineff1cient.
4 One of the two cutters works out
OF Key West. the other out of Miami
the article stated. A bootlegger at
Key West, quoted byS the writer,
said the cutter at that point had
made no real captures for three
years. Once the revenue cutter and
a. rum runner were tied UP nose to
nose at Miami. said the article, the
Runner laden with 10000 cases from
Nassau for Miami.
II Keen competition existed between
the ports Of st. Pierre, a French
2 possession, and Nassau, the article
stated, charging working agree
:, ment between the points whereby
'iirum runners clear from one port to
1.-THE other. st. Pierre charged an
export duty of $3.50 a case, COM
effort is being made by Nassau to
ireduce It's charge to So.
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