Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-13

dificult to detect any boats that left
the Canadian shore to go to the An1eri-
can side. While in Windsor I got
into conversation with a man engaged
in the business of exporting liquor.
asked him: DO you cross in the day.
timer He answered. Yes, quite often
I said, How Is 1t they do not get you?'
He replied with smile. Tt just happens
that they are not there when we go
across
"Our inspector went to Windsor not
so very long ago. He did not select any
special day. While there on January IA
he observed the following vessels cross
the river at Detroit in daylight with
cargoes of liquor:
ben, j. King master-Ten quarter
barrels beer, II cases whisky.
RAT, j. Sales master-Twenty-fo
cases whisky, cases wine, 1 case
brandy.
"Bat, A. Jacks master-Nineteen
cases whisky, case wine.
rabbi, I. Straight master-Five half
barrels beer, 8 cases whisky.
Bird, j. Bloom, master-Eighteen
cases whisky, 8 cases Bourbon, cases
Scotch whisky.
Bar, ]. Peters master-Thirteen cases
whisky, 4 cases Bourbon, 3 cases brandy.
THAT was in one day"
Customs Officers Look Away.
But that was not all that the
Canadian Parliament was told by its
minister of national revenue. He SUBJ
mitted a report from the Canadian
revenue collector at Bridgeburg, On
tario, written in April of this year,
which told OF conditions in that vicin-
ity. The collectors report was that
there were IL boats plying between
Canada and the United States at a
point where the river is about half a
mile wide. Some of the boats carried
from 300 to 1000 cases of liquor and
they were required to leave the Cana
dian docks not later than pm. The
Canadian officer said. mo effort as
far as we can see is made by the
United States authorities to seize any
of these boats, as the United States
customs are always notified by us an
hour or two before the boats leave. It
is a we'll known fact that some of these
boats land within a few hundred yards
of the United States customs Office and
unload without being disturbed. I
know that if conditions lwere reversed
we would have all these boats tied up
in less than a week"
Can any one doubt, after reading such
statements, that there is not only
something radically wrong in Denmark,
but in the United States of America,
particularly in the vicinity of Detroit |
and Buffalo?
OF course am not exculpating Can |
ada from all blame for the situation. |
In many instances, the Canadian Of
ficialS have not rendered all the help |
they might. But where our own serv- |
ice has been organized up to the point !
of commanding respect and a real ap- |
peal has been made to Canada, we
have respectable results-in many in
stances very satisfactory ones-from |
Canadian officials. There is no Cana |
dian law which prohibits the expectation |
OF liquor to the United States, but IN |
fact, Canada derives a revenue OF sew |
eral million dollars from its tax on ex- |
ported liquor. But whether Canada |
later agrees to revise its treaty with the |
United States to prohibit exports Of |
liquor to our country, or whether 1t |
maintains its present refusal, our own |
officials cannot avoid their responsible |
ity for the leak across the border.
Validating Policy at Washington.
The leak will continue, dri[s or
no drive, dry mobilization or nv dry |
until there Is real CO. |
own forces at Detroit and elsewhere |
along their borders.
Detroit is an example OF depart |
mental jealousy triumphant! The re-
SponSibilitieS of the customs service and |
service and the State and
city police overlap in law and In its
practical operation. This condition has
become worse in recent years. The !
situation is wholly inexcusable, because |
both the customs and the prohibition |
service are under the Secretary of the |
Treasury. He could crack their heads |
together and make them play ball."
Instead of that there has been policy |
of vacillation and a catering first to |
the recommendation Of one service and |
then the other.
A better focusing Of responsibility will |
have to come before there is any sue
cess on the side of the Federal Govern |
ment in what headliners term "the |
gigantic battle of Detroit" What really |
is wrong at Detroit, besides the service |
of some dishonest men, is that most |
deadly of maladies Of the Federal Gov |
eminent: Small departmental jeal-
ousies which result in an utter lack OF |
co-ordinated effort.
Evidence Is secured and boarded in |
one service. An observation OF a sus- |
picious circumstance by one officer OF |
the Government results in just a shrug |
or comment That's none of my bust
other service ought to tend to that"
Team Work Needed.
When the press, civic bodies and |
citizens complain of smuggling the |
customs service blames the State and
city police; the prohibition agents |
blame the customs; the United States |
sits in grand legal isolation,
saying, What can I do but lose cases |
when they don't bring me good evil
dence?"
And the local police say, cts the
fault of the Canadian officials, they |
help the smugglers across"
But let a big violator be caught by |
accident, or otherwise. and conviction |
secured and all these services bump |
their heads together in rushing head |
long to claim credit and to spread In |
their respective offices at Washington |
reports that it was their act and zeal,
but the other services grabbed the |
credit"
This creates an utterly demoralized |
condition of which smugglers and other |
law violators are not slow to take adj |
vantage. In effect, the different serv-
ices are planning against the fighting !
each other, instead Of unitedly COM
batting the bootleg fraternity.
What Is needed at Detroit and else
where is development Of team play be-
tween the several forces available, the |