The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1925-11-02
BOOZE
BETTER STUFF
SAYS CHEMIST
Dry Law Enforcement Be-
coming Contest Between
L. S. and "Leggers''
Chemists

Prohibition enforcement rapidly is
assuming the aspect Of Il contest be-
tween chemists employed by the gov
crnmcnt and those employed by the
bootleggers with the advantage on
the side of the latter. in the opinion
of a. W. Ecklund. chemist at the
state health department laboratory
here.
Ecklund has appeared as an expert
for the state in numerous Bookkeeping
prosecutions recently and has tesli-
fled regarding the qualify of the IL
Quor or alcohol on which the prose
cutions were based.
"The astonishing thing is that
nearly all the stuff was drinkable.
that is. it would not Kill anyone out
right who did drink it," said Eek
lund. THAT is contrary to the nop-
ular belief, but is borne out by ch m
zeal analysis.
Competing With Government
"The fact Of the matter is that the
boOtleggcrs are in active competiti on
with the government when it coma s
to employing chemists. Inc govern e.
ment has employed men to work out
formulas for denaturing alcohol and
making it unfit to drink. The boot
legers are willing to pay big money
to chemists who can show them how
to remove the things which the gov
eminent has added, thus making the
stuff fit to drink as alcohol. The gov
eminent has AZ different formulas for
use in denaturing alcohol. They run
from formulas which require the ad-
dition of 10 gallons of wood alcohol
and gallon of benZine to every 100
gallons of ethyl or grain alcohol, to
formulas for denaturing alcohol US
ed for face lotions and similar pur-
poses which are much more delicate.
1t is comparatively simple matter
for chemists to remove the foreign
elements in some of the latter but the
government attempts to keep a close
to purchase such alcohol and they are
always under a heavy bond TO insure
compliance with the law
None of the beer and wine tested
by him during the last year has corr
tanned substances which were in
themselves injurious, although sucm
a statement means nothing in SO far
as their availability for beverage
purposes is concerned, Ecklund said.
Out of Is samples of alcohol of the
kind which bootleggers deliver in tin
cans, he said, one contained slight
percentage of wood alcohol. although
not enough to cause death, being less
than one half of one per cent.
That "Terrible Taste"
The terrible taste" about which
bootleggers' patrons complain, Eek
lund said, usually is due to the fact
that the process used by the bootleg
ger in removing the denaturing ele-
ments was unduly rushed and trace s
of the foreign substances still remain.
Most of this stuff, he said, is not
more injurious than ordinary alcoh OK
if taken in small doses.
Deaths due to the use as beverage
of alcohol containing some deadly
poison are decreasing, Ecklund said.
The reason, he explained, is that
bOOtleggers are learning how to re-
move substances placed in CONNER
cial alcohol by government formulas
and the public is better educated re-
garding the various kinds of alcohol.
"Immediately after prohibition the
public seemed to regard all alcohol
as product that could be drunk
said Ecklund. Nov the public knows
better, or at least those interested in
such things do"
The three common kinds Of alcohol
he explained. are ethyl or pure grain
alcohol; amyl alcohol. more common
| ly known as fusil oil, and methyl or
| wood alcohol.
Cause of Headaches
The first is what bootleggers strive
to obtain. A combination of the first
and second is usually what they get
and the third is deadly poison which
| has caused numerous deaths.
| Amyl alcohol is natural product
Of distilation and is present in every
| sample of noonshinc or home made
alcohol tested; Ecklund said 1t has
a nauseating taste and smell and tax.
en- alone is deadly poison. Howevei
| the amount contained in moonshine is
too small to cause death of the pers n
drinking the moonshine, he said
! What it does, however. is to serious
| ly sap the vitality of the body, caus-
ing other disorders and almost infall
i IDLY it causes a terrible headache
| the state chemist said.