ILLICIT SPIRITS TRAFFIC

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22741, 29 November 1935, Page 12

ILLICIT SPIRITS TRAFFIC

GREAT MENACE IN BRITAIN "LETHAL FORM OF COCKTAILS " PLAN FOR SALE OF FORMULA "This year there has been a greater increase than ever before in the illicit spirits traffic," declared counsel prosecuting tor his Majesty's Customs and Excise in a Liverpool case, in which he alleged that an accused man "was about to print 10,000 pamphlets on how to make spirits when he was caught." William Daly, aged 31, woodworker, of Knotty Ash, was fined £lO for possessing without a licence a still for distilling spirit, and Frederick Young, or Hartley, aged 73, of Manor Park, Essex, was fined £l5O for aiding and abetting him. Allegations of an extensive propaganda in regard to a formula for producing pure spirits were made against Young by Mr Leslie Pocock, on behalf of the Customs and Excise. '

He etated that over a period of six months the following advertisement had appeared:— Scotch distiller gives particulars for producing pure spirits. Genuine formula. Hartley, Greenhill Grove, Manor Park, Essex."

Among the large number of replies to that advertisement was one from an investigation officer of the Customs and Excise. . Mr H. J. Browning, who used the name of "C. Parker." He received an answer from somebody named Hartley at Young's address, explaining that the price of the formula was ss, and that it must not be confused with potato spirit, or other vile stuff.

Browning sent ss, and received lengthy hand-written instructions, which, Mr Pocock stated, • were written by a man who certainly knew his job, for the instructions were excellent for the making of spirits. Browning called at Young's address, and saw Young, who gave him a lecture on the process of distillation, and explained how to get the apparent maturity. He offered to make a still for Browning for £3 2s. Mr Pocock went on to state that when Young's premises were visited by officers with a search warrant, they seized a large quantity of correspondence from people who had obtained stills and wanted further information. One of the letters was from Daly, and when Detective Inspector Langford and other officers of the Liverpool Criminal Investigation Department visited Daly's house they found the component parts of a complete still, with a boiler, of ■ 20-gallons capacity. A number of letters sighed by Hartley were also found On the premises. A further call was then made on Young, who admitted he had supplied people with information as to how to make their own spirits. He was also alleged to h3ve added, "That is not illegal, and you can't stop me from selling my brains." POLICE THREATENED.

He told them he could bring an action against the police for remoying his correspondence, as the withholding of names and addresses had caused him to lose good money. He declared he was only sending to clients information that was in text books. "All I have to say upon that," added Mr Pocock, "is that a doctor may know the secret o£ some subtle poison and write about it in the Lancet, but he cannot advertise it as a recipe for murder." Young .went on to tell the officers, according, to Mr Pocock, that he had been selling information about fermentation and distillation for years. He added; " I am up against the price of whisky. It is a shame." He was also alleged to have declared that he was sending off a still that day, " in spite of you and your Government."

Young, who declared he could neither read nor write, stated that the letters in his house which bore the name Hartley belonged to a man of that name who had lodged with him for eight years. When Mr Pocock told the magistrate that Young had been previously convicted for not having a licence for a still, he declared that was true, but the conviction was on false evidence. Mr Pocock alleged ■ that' Young • had for a long time been in trouble with the Excise authorities. ,

HUNDREDS OF POUNDS SPENT. "Hundreds of pounds have been spent by the Government," he continued, " tracing the stills resulting from Young's advertisement. In Northern Ireland, the Shetlands and Orkneys, and all over the country, maximum penalties have been imposed on persons to whom Young has supplied stills. "This man has an extensive scheme for propaganda, and when his house was searched, proofs were discovered of a pamphlet on how to make spirits, of which he was going to print 10,000. This year there has been a greater increase than ever before in the illicit spirits traffic. These stills have been found — the filthiest utensils—carried on without any supervision for the manufacture of the most lethal form of cocktails, under the foulest conditions possible. They are an absolute menace to the community." Mr Pocock added that the cost of that prosecution was over £IOO. It was impossible to estimate the total cost of the inquiries necessitated through Young's activities. On behalf of Daly, Mr Hector _Munro urged that he was an innocent victim, having purchased the still with the idea of making spirits for home use for medicinal purposes, not knowing that was illegal. The still had not been assembled by him and had never been used.

Young,on hearing his fine, remarked: " I would rather do the time. I shall save a ' quid' a week while in prison. My friends may decide to pay the fine for me."