| Show SMUGGLING BY THE NAVY THE return of the omaha maha and shatara swatara Sw atara I from the asiatic station to mare island without passing under inspection and the later discovery of a quantity of dutiable goods aboard have started a controversial breeze that is threatening to breed a cyclone in this particular case the fault seems to fall in great measure upon the customs officers at san ban francisco at the same time the navy officers are far from being exonerated from blame the accusers have not yet gone so far as to prove conclusively that the united states navy to is engaged in a general smuggling busi business nesb for the trade although the charges from high quarters all but assert as much when the bill for transferring the revenue marine tz to the navy was under discussion senator shermand shermans Sher mans successful opposition to its passage was on the ground that the navy officers were habitual smugglers and ought not to be entrusted with the enforcement of the revenue laws the following is from his remarks oti on that occasion if reputation in i not always at fault the naval officers are generally supposed supposed to be the largest smugglers in our country in proportion to their number and the idea of putting a naval officer to guard our coast against smuggling is at least rather a strange one for an old salt I 1 suppose there is scarcely a naval vessel that comes into our ports but what has ban goods that under the strict rulings of the treasury would be subject to duty mr gray 1 I should hould like to ask the senator from ohio if that wholesale smuggling which he seems to think is engaged in by naval officers it is a part of the high function from which we are going to call them when we transfer them to revenue duty mr sherman III think they will stick more than they will to their new duty of guarding against smuggling A revenue marine officer cannot enter a war vessel of the united state and inspect it as he would a comme commercial reial vessel and the result is in that many things are brought in here without paying duty senator sherman has been secretary of the treasury and is good authority on this matter though his charge here may in the heat of argument have been more or less exaggerated with all ail possible allowance enough remains upon which to lose base a very boisterous scandal the official report of the investigation in this recent affair at mare island may be expected to throw a little new light on that case and probably others it is not too much to say that light is needed badly the officers of the navy are just as much sub subject j act to the customs laws jaws as are private citizens there is nothing in their official commissions that should in the slightest degree shield them from the regular consequences of lawless actions on the other hand the position they hold presupposes them examples to the citizens of obedience to established laws the effect of such disclosures as the one at mare island is humiliating to the govern ment but it is a wholesome scandal |
