New Britain herald., 1930-01-23
JERSEY SENATOR'S
 SIDE WITH OFFICER
 IN BOOZE CHARGES
Continued From First Paec)

1 had never been fined or punished m any other way by the federal author- tics. They laid this oversight to Mir. Eltng, who issued a denial.
 Made Inquiry in June
 "The prohibition department came here early in June" Mr. Biting | began
 After they had allowed the Pratt liquor to cludo thom,' an assistant put in.
 And asked me-" Mr. Elting con- tinucd, ito issue q customs seizure warrant. We had had unhappy cA- pcricnccs in two previous eases where we had granted such a re- quest, the courts had squashed he warrants and the agents had been forced to return the seized liquor. i So We asked for further evidoncc evidence which would assure us that ithe identity of the packages which i had been admitted through tine cas- items office bad not been changed-- ] that is, that the casks had not bo,n opened and destroyed and the liquor put in cases.
 i After d conference with Assistant Clitcd States Attorney Robert r.: Watts it was agreed that VIZ did not have sufficient proof of this. and tHc prohibition agents decided to try to seize the liquor without warrant. Apap;cntly Surrendered Wine
 Apparently this was done. Ap- p&rcnlly AIr. Pratt surrendered the 'iUuor to them without demanding q warrant. Incidentally. if d search , warrant had been issued and tt- Contraband described in it had been found and seized, the agents would have had to arrest Mir. Pratt. ac- cordlng to my b@lici.
 "Mc were never informed of th" S,Izure so we conld not. act. If We 1 had been informed we could only t-It%vr made q complaint to the United 1 States attorney.
 "Eut that WIs the duty of tL" pro , liLition agents. of Mr. Calhoun. and apparently they djd not make any such complaint, for Mir. Pratt is stlIl at lihcrty."
 The charges regarding Mr. Pratt were inC>udcd in an affidavit tn" New Jersey Anti Saioon t."aguc Srtt, tu President Hoover seeking to block tine reIppoiutmcut of Colonel Arthur |. Toran as comptroller of the cus- toms here and to bring about lh. renewal of Mr. Biting. Henry C. Stuart. assistant collector Of customs. Gc orEe Brewer. assistant solicitor of customs, Thomas J. Skuse, assistant comptroller, and George O'Kcef-. special agent of the treasury depart ulcnt.
 Customs officials sad the affidavit accusing Mr. Pratt of bringing in tho liquor had been made by a iorm2r customs cmployc who had i been suspended for bootlcsgiNc and Nas dismissed a short time later. The Evening World said that Mir. lratt, on a train cn rout" to Florida, 5jjd last night there's nothing l tu it."
 Washington. Jan. 33 lRj-A de scripriou of the New Jersey hunting lodge of Arthur r. Fotan, Comptrol- Ter Of customs al New York. in which he Js charged by James K. Shields. state SUI, riutcndcnt Of tue Autj- saloon I,rHguc ot New Jersey. with s'r'u@ iVuor. is contained in ~hm Mr. %hprld4 made public today as an affidavit hy Harold Nadcl, pri- vat" juN%ji=#tor.
 Pictures With Report
 Tie document which Shields s;t,d ig received from his Newark olrjc.. was ""companiod by pictures said 10 taNo been taken at roran's bunting lodge nt Mount Airy, showing what were srt out in the affidavit to be a bar, Ganlbliu= machines. and bottle
 Shields, who yesterday filed with President Hoover blanket charges that the New York customs force is not effective in preventing liquor smuggling and that Foran is oppos- ed lo the prohibition law, made the affidavit and pictures public. he said. "In aU&Wcr to charges that the raid on Eorau's shack was made without any reuson."
 The raid vas made yesterday on . th" allegation that Il slot machine Was in the lodge, but no illcgal dc vices were found
 ! Nadcl's deposition Nas 10 the cf- feet that he visited the bungalow "on the premises known as the Jim .uck Farm in IIuntcrdon county, Nr" Jersey January Io, and looked through d glass window pane m the door Of said bungalow and sa" that the room within was equipped with an old-timc bar. cash register and bottles"
 Also Saw Slot Machine
 "I also saw in said room" the af- i ,ravit st ont. n slot macit,Hc of 'h" kind which may DC used 10 .#ulhle for money or other valuable 'jnu-s. have often sron slot ma chimes of this character in common | lis.o and know that they are for gambling purposes
 "'Thc door was lorIcd at the tim" ,.'Jl did not enter it. but l could gee thr interior clearly through th'
 ,laEs. | observed a l1r2r room tur IUShrd with wicker furniture, ;