Brownsville herald. [volume], June 30, 1929, Image 14

About Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current

Image provided by: University of North Texas; Denton, TX

                
^Stes^Border Patrol Speedboat
(In Pursuit of Liquor Runners
■ ■ -• ... y-vy-v....- ■ •vn.,«•-p- r. ,
»
By BONITA WITT
loro tnem adequate protection from
the prying eves of drv sleuths.
As we lazily circle Belle Isle the
i occupants of several din«?v-«nn*.Qr_
Bootleggers?
Perhaps, but as long as they re
main in Canadian waters the Unit
ed States enforcement men are
powerless to act. but—let them |
make a dash for the American
j| shore and well see some action.
Ram Running Simple
| Coming close to the Detroit shore I
i bnce more, we pass scores of boat
wells extending into the water. Sim
ple matter on a dark nieht to bring '
In a boatload of “spirits” as the
Canadians ssy. and slam shut the
door. In a few hours the cargo has
been taken off and the bootlegger
Is ready for the return trip.
Farther down stream, nearer
Lake Erie, our boat, manned by a
veteran of the border patrol and a
mechanic passes Coolidge highway,
over which the trucks of the rum
runners pound as they hurry from j
the shore with the loads brought
over by speedboats and luggers.
Then as we approach the fam- I
ous Ecorse. notorious for years as
the aven for bootleg operators. Ev- j
ery house has a boat sltp. no mat- j
ter how* poverty stricken It may
appear.
A Changed Scene
Two years ago when the writer
covered the same territory few
boats were In the wells at Ecorse—
they w-ere across the river being
loaded. A different sight spreads
before us today. Dozens of craft
of all kinds line the shores and
groups of ‘monkeys” Uhe border pa
trol nickname for bootleggers’ help
ers) sit idly talking on the docks
although it Is almost six o’clock,
the hour when the Canadian export
docks close.
“Know what that means?” our
pilot asks. "If the ’leggers were
working as they did in the old
days there wouldn’t be a boat in
here—they’d all be on the other side
loading. Doesn't that look as If we
have partially succeeded in drying
up the river?”
The “monkeys” grin most inno
cently as we train our binoculars
on them and continue down the
river.
River Practically “Dry”
“This river is practically dry
within border patrol territory.” our
pilot continues. “Our main purpose
is to bottle up the stuff in Canada
—keep it from coming across. We
aren’t primarily interested In mak
ing seizures. Capturing one or two
loads In Itself doesn’t mean much.
It's actually keeping It on the oth
er side that gets results. Of course
there still Is considerable wet goods
coming across Lake Erie. That
Top. cne of the small jots of land In the month of the Detroit
river which affords protection to bcotleggcrs; center, an idle rum
rurninj? boat tied up at the LaSalle export dock: below, a typical bor
der patrol beat which formerly was a bootlegtring craft.
territory belongs to the coast guard
which Is equipped with large lake
boats but it needs a lot more
equipment than it has at present
to cope with the lake situation.
"In recent months the runners
have been installing machine guns
and other firearms on their craft
and they have threatened to “saw
our boats in two" with their bullets.
"My men have orders never to
shoot to kill except in self de
fense. Reports to the contrary are
lies. They are told to shoot at
the boats—not their occupants.
"Our problem is doubly hard now
because the rummies' are building
false bottoms in their boats and
concealing the stuff there. Also
they sometimes nail kegs of beer
underneath a plank and tow it
behind their boats.
"Most of our seizures take place
on land. We spot the boats as
they pull Into the shore. The men
on them jump into the river and
abandon the craft. Most of the
boats re use in patrol duty are
ex-rum runners. The one in whidh
we are riding was captured. It'll do
50 to 55 miles an hour."
Past wealthy Grosse lie. which
affords shelter for many a liquor
boat on a dark night, out into coast
guard territory we dart, still no ex
i citement. Have the bootleggers de
serted these waters?
t The Chase Begins
But. wait! What's that? A streak
of foam flashes past the Canadian
shore and heads for the open lake.
Our pilot buckles on his gun which
he had laid aside when we went
into Canadian waters, and grunts.
"Maybe we'll show you some fire
works now!”
Kis foot grows heavy upon the
accelerator, at 40. 45. 50. 55 miles
an hour we plow through the placid
waters dashing up clouds of spray
on either side to overtake the fast
disappearing streak which is mov
ing in the direction of West Sister
island, off the coast of Toledo.
0 0 0
Tomorrow: The Case.
-
Agile porkers may be photo-1
graphed perfectly through a device j
to hold them invented by Gus Bosh
stedt of Wisconsin university.
if ' Our Position j
| \ ~~ Our position is one of extreme responsibility — a jilt
§ responsibility that we realize. ,1 |5
I We carry this responsibility realizing that many JiS
people are being helped by the service we give in doing
I it .... a friend in time of need .... in caring for your rj
| Capital Stock ..$250,0^0.00 t
(Paid in $100,000.00) |jl
; (From Earnings $150,000.00) |J|?
e I . Surplus (Earned) ......... $60,000.00 ffjjl.
State 11
N tiottaf Bank J
CWNSVILLE !1
uwoeR us. i
dOVKRNMDir
SUPERVISION
v
I
4
DESERTED OIL
FIELD TAPPED
Site of Firat Oil Well De
veloped After Long
Neglect
BURKESVILLE. Ky.. June 29.—
<.$»i—Recent highway improvements
have added to the value and the de
velopment of the Burkesville oil
field, where in 1829 an oil well blew
in and was described as a “compleat
phenominon" and an expensive
nuisance.
Burkesville claims that the first
oil well in America was brought in
here 100 years ago last March. Not
much was done with this natural
resource because little was known, of
its value.
The oil, which was struck by
men drilling for salt water, gushed
out of the well, overflowed the
country side and coated Cumber
land river for several miles with a
black film.
A letter dated March 15, 1829.
tells of the river having been “set
on fire” with the result that it
“burnt for At least a mile.” The
spectacle of the burning river, ac
cording to local legend, aroused
superstitious fears in many resi
dents, some of whom are said to
have fled.
The letter, the original of which
is preserved, said the oil “burns
well in a lamp & is said to paint
well & oil leather & I have no
doubt it will be a good medicine
for many complaints, particularly
the rheumatic pains. The whole at
mosphere is perfumed with it. It
is a compleat phenominon.”
While the coming in of the well
caused some trouble, it probably
proved a source of revenue to some
men who bottled a quantity of the
oil, and sold it at $2 a pint as a
cure-all. Some of it was shipped
to England and hundreds of bot
tles were disposed of in this coun
try.
Some of the bottles, into which
had been blown the label. "Omerl
can Medicinal Oil, Burkesville, Ky.,
1829,’ have been handed down to
present citizens of Burkesville.
Returns from the medicine prob
ably made up to some extent for
the disappointment of the two drill
ers over falling to find the concen
trated saline solution from which
they hoped to produce table salt, a
valuable commodity in those regions
because of the high cost of trans
portation.
Oil continued to be produced from
time to time in wells drilled for salt
water, and when the commercial
value of petroleum was recognized
many wells were drilled in Cumber
land county.
But in the meantime railroads
had been built at other places, but
not within 38 miles of the site of
the original well. More accessible
fields were found, and Cumberland
county never profited as did other
oil communities. Recent building
of roads, however, has added to the
value of the field, and there now are
a number of producing wells.
Coincidentally with the resump
tion of interest in oil. Burkesville
soon is to have the benefit of oil’s
companion, natural gas. A Kansas
City syndicate is drilling a gas well
on the farm of W. L. Carter, three
miles from Burkesville, where the
first oil well came in.
MONTGOMERY LIBEL
SUIT TRANSFERRED
(Special to The Herald)
R AYMONDVTLLE. June 28—Mrs.
Julia C. Montgomery, publisher of
Monty’s Monthly, against whom ,
Judge R. S. Dorsett has a $50,000 1
libel suit, has been succesfu! In get
ting the suit transferred front the
103rd civil judicial district court
the 93rd civil district court In Hij ”
dalgo county. Mrs. Montgomery*^
declared in her petition for the -f
change that she believed a fair and
Impartial hearing could not be had
In Willacy county.
The case came up for hearing in
Raymonclvilel June 22, and Judga
A. M. Kent, ruling on her petition
presented at that time, ordered the
transfer.
Duluth. Minn., home of many
Americans of Scandinavian extrac
tion. has a “Johnson club." It has
200 members bearing that name.
Two Montgomery, Minn. families
have merged. In a period of 10
years, five Cemenskys have mar
ried five Trcxinskys.
I
bThis clever suite will add to the nown
comfort and attractiveness of
any living room. The wide arms Payment
and deep seats give it outstanding appear- this Week
ance and comfort. The spring cushions are tc
upholstered in a high grade tapestry. The $5.00
suite is exactly as illustrated.
+ Here is a splendid value for little Down
money. The three pieces are exactly paynien{
as illustrated. Spring seat construe- ^ en
tion. The fibre is closely woven over a frame ^
of selected hard wood that is braced with steel.
♦ fy/ Aft ^his large suite can be used in any Down
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ions harmonize with the lacquer fin- $5X0
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35 Fibre and Stick Reed
Suites on Display
This Week
Each Suite a Different Design
Here at the Borderland you will find the newest and
most up to date fibre and stick reed suites—thirty-five
different styles. It will be easier to make your selec
tions from this large assortment at a wide range of
prices. All of these suites are the famous Lloyd
Loom or Hay wood-Wakefield makes.
Home lovers will delight in our display of stick reed furniture for
the sun room and porch. This three-piece suite, including settee*
rocker and chair are low priced at $79.50.
A «;n Thc fhree tone finish and ^raceful lines Down
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specially blended to harmonize with the siik damask $3-00
coverings of the cushions.
LIBERAL CREDIT [ I
I
You can pay for one of the Suites out of your
weekly budget and never miss it. I
Easy Weekly or Monthly Payments
I
pj See the Brownsville 3
1 ""i^Ou^ Weslaco J
Windows Donna
| This Week ' Jqooclp/ac McAllen §
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