Evening star., 1927-11-13
BY WALTER III. ATKINS.

IL and dry navy" now mobil-
lied In greater strength, are
~ on war footing" to launch
the swiftest offensive ever
made against smuggling Of foreign
Liquors into Americas bootleg market.
This confident assurance from
Government officials intrusted with
Volstead law enforcement follows
weeks of intensive preparation for a
terrific drive to break up smuggling
as an organized industry.
The rum blockade brings into
action $4,000 men and 573 vessels
the largest number of men and
boats assembled since prohibition
began.
Recruiting this formidable land
and sea force for a terrific smash on
all fronts against liquor smugglers,
the Government has brought about
a systematic pooling Of all available
personnel and equipment of Federal
services specially charged with en-
forcement duty.
Government officials predict that as
a result of the projected campaign
a body blow will be dealt the organ
ized rum smuggling traffic which is
now pouring an estimated annual
volume Of $200.000.00 worth of for
| eign whisky through unguarded
American gateways for domestic
| bootleg trade.
Program Of Campaign.
| These important developments
stand out in the Governments pro-
| gram to suppress the booze invaders:
1. The Treasury Department, by
bringing prohibition, customs and Coast
Guard bureaus under unified control
and establishing teamwork with other
services having dry law enforcement
functions, has massed the Govern
ment's available forces for united
attack.
have been added to the Coast Guard,
giving the dry navy fleet greater
speed and longer cruising radius.
3. Dry agents, customs inspectors
and enforcement scouts are being con.
centrated in larger numbers at strate.
gic points along the coasts and inter-
national borders, Tightening the block
ade at chief danger points.
| 4. State and Treasury Departments
have reached understandings with en-
voys of foreign powers for better en-.
forcement of anti-smuggling treaties
chiefly with the Canadian and British
governments.
| 5. An intelligence system, now per-
|
nation of smugglers' plots in this
country and abroad, and operate more
effectively to stop the sailing of rum
ships from foreign ports with cargoes
intended for American consumption.
Vast Resources Available.
The Government will carry the fight
to the Illicit booze importers with anti
smuggling forces made up of these
units: 1000 enforcement scouts, IL 200
coast guardsmen, $500 customs inspec-
tors, 1000 border patrolmen. $500 rev.
enue officers, 100 customs patrol boats,
472 Coast Guard vessels, seaplanes
and squadron Of airplanes.
| Outside what are strictly known as
prohibition and customs defense lines,
| the brunt of the fighting against the
rum smugglers will be in the hands of
the famed Coast Guards dry law en-.
| forcement personnel and equipment.
The dry navy" fleet has 80 cruising
cutters. 81 harbor cutters, 25 convert
ed Navy .destroyers. $50 patrol boats,
121 picket boats, besides 277 Coast
Guard stations.
| Speedy cutters, built especially to
combat smugglers' boats out at sea,
each carry a crew of IA men, and in
addition to the 3-inch guns they carry
are equipped with 1-pounders and ma
chine guns. These vessels. recently
constructed, will Withstand the heavi.
est seas. Included among the new boats
are the fast 125-foot patrol vessels, for
| operations against the rumships far
off shore at distances 100 miles and
beyond. There are SO new patrol
boats of this type, all equipped with
heavy guns. Also available as rum
ship chasers are five Navy destroyers
recently reconditioned.
$15,000,000 Spent on Fleet.
| To strengthen and modernize the
dry navy" feet, the Government has
spent SIS 1000, 900 this year. A large
part of this sum went into the con-
struction Of swift vessels especially
designed to combat the smugglers in
their improved and changing methods
for landing cargoes of foreign liquors
] on American coasts. Treasury officials
predict the fleet will more than JUS
tify the action of Congress in voting
larger funds for this purpose. They
are confident the day Is not far dis
tant when liquor smuggling upon a
commercialized scale will be under
| control.
New seaplanes added to the dry
navy equipment are to cooperate
with various divisions of the fleet in
| scouting work, making observations
of rum ships lying far offshore. Sea-
planes will aid the destroyer force in
preventing transfer Of liquor cargoes
from foreign ships to American fish
ing boats or tramp steamers.
In effecting a radisposition OF the
American attacking force at sea,
Treasury enforcement officers expect
to maintain full strength equipment
in the north Atlantic coastal zone, par
ticularly between the New Jersey and
Massachusetts coasts. A better con.
centration off the New York and New
Jersey coasts is made possible by the
faster vessels now in commission.
Swift Patrols for South.
Offensives to be conducted against
the smugglers in south Atlantic and
Gulf waters involve the assignment Of
some Of the newer and swifter patrol
ships in those waters, particularly off
Miami, Tampa, New Orleans and Gal.
weston. Strengthening of the Coast
Guard patrol and customs forces off
the Pacific Coast, at strategic points"
most used by smugglers in landing
liquors. has been ordered by officials
to head off the smugglers in that zone
or operations. Pacific land forces also
will be augmented.
Since the Coast Guard fleet by sys.
tematic pursuit broke up "rum
row" between Capep Cod and the New
Jersey coast, where 20 or more rum
ships lying 20 to 80 miles of shore
long did a thriving trade with Ameri.
can boats from shore, maneuvers have
been extended largely into deep sea
zones. Customs forces, plying near
shore waters with 100 small but speedy |
boats. work constantly with the small |
patrol boats Of the Coast Guard in the |
harbors and inlets along the coasts.
Liquor smugglers now usually at-'I
tempt to transfer their cargoes to |
other vessels outside the normal cruis.