The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1923-11-05

for turning one Of these barren,
rocky places into a casino with
hotel grounds and, as my American
friend said, oceans of booze and
then a few drops and splashes."
The Grand Bahama scheme" is
contemplated on princely lines. If
it ever materializes it certainly will
be one Of the most magnificent dis
graces under the British flag.
There are 5000 islands and
Gays" or Keystone mere rocks
in the Bahama group, the vast ma
Jority Of them uninhabited. AL
ready one or two of these wild,
low-lying coral and volcanic forma-
tons are used as liquor stores.
Gun Cay, for instance, is quite
small, standing forlorn in the
southern ocean, but it is a place
Of the greatest strategic Importance
to the bootlegger, who caches"
(hides) his supplies there, ready to
run them in on F1orida's far
stretching ridiculously unguarded
coast.
Vast Stores Of Whiskey.
AS for Nassau itself, it Is -esti-
mated that at times there is as
much as $10,000,O00 worth of
whisl1ey stored in these rickety old
liquor shanties on Bay street. And
still the stuff pours in and pours
out, and the bank balances grow
and grow. The sea route from
Nassau harbor to the Atlantic
Is known as 1.-THE Great Whiskey
Way"
Up and down this ocean path of
nearly 1000 miles, In the track of
the old West Indies silk and spice
trades. pass the small schooners rid
ing deep with their cargoes of Brit
ish liquor.
The magical atmosphere Of easy
fortune making is like an infectiVe
madness. You feel that you are
wandering about in a dazzling gold
field, with riches ready to fall into
your hands. Every one is rich-no
one seems to value money.
have watched Americans play
ing dice for fifty dollars a throw.
The gold craze will get you If you
are not careful, and you will be
scrambling to throw down your
few dollars and get your share of
this avalanche of fortune.
Say! Are you going into the
gamer" an American asked me.
tits sure easy money. If you've
got any dough at all, just stay here
six months and go home with a real
wad-one o. them sort o. wards
with the flavor lasts guarantee
on it."
The prosperity the trade has
| brought the islands was we'll
summed up in the words of an
| American bootlegger:
ho
Bahamas" he said, 1.-The govern
ment had no dough at all. They
were owing salaries, and gone
away was pinned on the safe.
| with the liquor come the Ameri-
can dooty, and they had to call a
meetn of the House of Assembly
ter deal with the money good an
well. But the guy who opened the
saIe last. and was the only one
VINO knew the combination, had
oled OF old age and despair So they
carved into it and found another
one inside.
wal. they got no reason fer
knoWun what n Sam Hill might
DC In that-Wtal papers fer all
they knowed. So they carved that
open and found-nothun. Wal,
they paid up all the salaries that
was owun, gave round a few
bonuses, and built a moo court.
mouse which was a durn sight
worse than the old one. An the
House Of Assembly keeps sittin'
ter consider what'll they do with
all the money"
There were several wild nights
in the Islands wooden hotels, when
the drink went round with wonder
ful regularity. and every visitor
was welcome. There were gener-
ally a few women, and Jazz dances
/ were popular.
] One OF the chief performers at
these drinking concert dances was