Year: 1868

these warehouses; in fact IL would have been pext
to impossible 70 protect these products Of Illicit dis
tillati0n WIN le the manipulation previous to putting
them In the market was going on. Government
locks and government officers and all the cOntriy
ances OF the law to secure the safe keeping OF
spirits held for tax made desences under cover
OF which fraudulent operators escaped detection:
and from accurate collation. OF data 1t may he stated
that the number OF barrels OF whiskey upon which
tax has been evaded and profits pocketed has aver
aged one hundred and fifty thousand per year for the


Nor was this all. The system of fraud was elab-
Grated into an exact science. Facilities not being
sufficient to cover the gigantic IT frauds projected,
nection with bonded warehouses ana VITA doors
and passages communicating ON every moor, and
under OF the fanced safeguards OF the law the
most gigantic frauds of the whole catalogue were
perpetraed. In putting period TO removals lor
rectifcation and to transportation In bond, there.
fore, q step was taken In the right direction, ana
that step should be followed out to Its logical con-
clsion, which may be stated in three points, VIZ =


!. The abolition of all warehouses, and. in fact,
the abrogation of the whole bonded warehouse
system as y vehicle for the collection OF the tax.


e The dispensing W Tn the system of giving credit
10 dlstlllers and rigid adherence to the cash sys
tem


The collection Of the tax at the distillery thus
leaving the recter ana the wholesaler at liberty, and
reducing the number OF points to be supervised With
in reasonable limits


A simphlcaton OF the provisions of the law would
thus be eliec ed, which would insure the collection
or at least ninety per cent Oh the whole revenue which
should accrue to government from the whlskey in
tereSt.


The system as IL stands, though somewhat smpIi-
fed, furnishes an easy cover for frauds OF equal
magnitude with those formerly perpetrated. In
point of fact, in short. the facilities are offered
and made available. IL is only necessary that the
storekeeper OF u warehouse should be In coluson
with distiler Of spirits, and for every lot
Of say, twenty barrels admitted into warehouse prop
erly, to admit twO three four or anv other number
OF lots OF twenty barrels similarly branded without
entering the additional lots on the warehouse re-
cords. When the owner pays tax on the original loo
OF twenty barrels procuring OF course tax receipts
for this lot which he withdraws regularly and at the
same time throws on the market the other lots not
put the records, should ny question be raised
to any OF these lots he has only TO produce the
ceIpts just spoken of to protect tn m.


IL Is needless to discuss in this connection the
OF metres and Of the various eXpedents for ia King
distillerles according to their capacity FOR pr0duc
ton. These can hardly have effect even to modify
frauds while the system remains, and the TACT iS
patent that the present organization under the pres
ent law Is almost dead failure Under it the col
lection OF the tax Is the exception not the RUE, and
so 1t will continue to be while the system remains in
spite OF metres and all other astringent Inventions
Az IL is the number Of dstilleries which defy deec-
ton and operate with impuniy In the various cities
Of the cOuntry-small distileres with rectfying
houses In connection, and serving sort OF tender
for their frauds-may be counted by thousands
while the number of these in this city and Brooklyn
and Jersey City would foot up to some scores, all en-
gagged either daily nightly In Illicit distaon, and
IN point of fact, carrying their fraudulent opera
tons with almost utter impunity.