The Dayton forum. [volume] (Dayton, Ohio) 1913-1949, 1937-06-11
Lonely Vigil Of Two U. S.
Customs Agents Breaks
Smuggling Case
BY C. S. Van Dresser

- of raw November rain dashed into
his face out of the murky darkness that
sirouded him and his fellow Federal
customs inspector as from the top noor
Of Hudson River pier they watched
the looming hulk of the steamship Man
haitian. berthed q few yards away at her
New York dock.
Dye think they'll try TO land the
stuff tonight. Jack?"
Hard TO tell. Ral,s Jack growled
through chattering teeth. @The super g
had Schatx tailed ever since he was let
out on bond month ago. OKeefe's
positive that louise of dope smuggler
has load on the Manhattan. and he's
seldom wrong. Neither Skies nor Davis
found thing when the ship docked
this afternoon
Bill strained his eyes toward the after
deck of the nearby vessel. hardly able
TO discern the movement of its slight
rise and fall as the Hudson River cur
rent tugged AZ the giant ship, pulling its
hawsers taut.
@Snhl What's that?s
.*geahl I hear somethin', too
Footsteps echoed duly on the roof A
strange place for some one to be walking
at that time of night. The customs IN
spectors scrambled UP ladder 10 the
rooftop as quietly as possible. Two
figures partially obscured in the dark
ness were running toward the street end
Of the pier. The obviously heavy load
each carried impesied their flight.
Stop where you arelI" commanded
the leading customs agent, swapping on
his powerful aashIight One of the
fleeing men turned and fired into the
glare, Jack Thompson's revolver an
sWered almost simultaneously, and the
desperate dropped his load and threw
panion continued the flight, with Jacks
partner ID close pursuit Too late the
agent caught up with mis- quarry, for as
they reached the edge OF the pier the
fugitive hurled heavy black suitcase
out into the night. where 1t splashed
resoundingIy IN the inky water below.
''sThat won't do you any good, said
the Federal man as he marched the
captive back along the roof to join his
brother officer
Customs men on the lower level of the
pier summoned d Coast Guard cutter as
once. which soon hsled the onainous
piece OF luggage out of the river with
graphing irons Each suitcase carried
by the two criminals caught on the pier
roof contained more than flfty-twe
pounds of opium.
The prisoners gave their names as
Olaf Olsen and Slado Stadens. They
refused 70 admit that they knew what
was III the suitcases, but were jailed
and held incommunieado. There were
too many things happening around the
New York waterfront for the last month
that needed explanation.
Until comparatively recently it had
been normally quiet around the Hudson
River piers. Superintendent Gregory
w. OKeefe's customs agents had been
carrying out the usual routine OF in
spection- discovering minor cases as
tourists attempting 10 elade tariff duty
or seizlng an illegal diamond or two
The dope racket had been exceptionally
quiet, thanks in no small measure s<
the breaking up OF that sinister snd
world wide ring known as the Drug
Barons OF Europe. That had been i
nasterful piece OF work on the part oi
the Federal men working IN coniunctioG
with agents of several foreign countries
Smuggling OF opium 20 the United States
had noticeably declined since then.
But for the last month the contrabanc
had mysteriously increased. There wa:
the case OF the German steward. Fritz