Evening Star Newspaper, November 27, 1921, Page 67

Part REACHING STARDOM' IN AMERICAN 4—6 Pages . LAUGHED when my dressers warned me I should be nervous about going on first time. “But what can happen? I know my part. my voice is in perfect forn exclaimed with absurd confidence. “Oh, la, la!" murmured an old Frenchwoman, as she toved with the curls of my wig. her hands trembling Wwith a fright T did not fecl I was not to make my first appear- ance until the second act, and the time just seemed to drag along. last came a sharp knock on the and a cali-boy cried: “‘Half hour, Miss Braslau!" oor, FICTION to sing for the | | thumping like a trip-hammer. My tongue seemed to be cleaving to the roof of my mouth. My forehead felt moist. 1 glanced at my ‘“sister,” Miss Sparks. She was as calm as a mill- vond_and seemed genuinely to be in- 1 “terested in the book she was study. inz. I looked hard at my own book hopeful that it might help steady me. But before 1 could read a word the curtain suddenly swept aside, the glare of the footlights stung my eyes and the music from the orchestra in the pit, which had seemed so distant, ears. Out front 1 could sense the ineffa- | | | | | MAGAZINE SECTION WASHINGTON, D. C, SUNDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 27, 1921. s i j OPERA—3y s | HE Prima Donna, in This Article, Tells of First Important and Successful Role at Metropolitan—Harrowing Experience at Later Performance—Joviality of | Opera Stars—Their Social Life—Miss Braslau Creates the Role of Shanewis in American Indian Opera by Cadman—When Singers Are Nervous. ~T (Gene\ I used to anticipate this with pleasur, almost childish joy. The scene-shifters were all my very good friends. Yes, and the scrubwomen, too, whom 1 used to see in the dark corridors that fringe on the rehearsal rooms and who alwhys gave me a pleasant greeting. “Good morning and God @less you, Miss Braslau,” said one of them to me as 1 came from rehearsal one morning. “I remember you when you were a standee at near every per- formance.” i : now became a terrifying roar in my | fyrther efforts, as far as opera was i that I had worked so hard to build | concerned, and took up church sing- | ble presence of my first operatic au- | dience, a sweeping sea of dress shirts !and white bosoms reflecting the pow- | singer at the opera, can afford not|the opera hou: erful lights in which I bathed. From That meant I had still half an hour 'a battery of friends seated far in the ! before my entrance. Oh. how that time crawled. 1 killed it by trying to buck up the spir of my kindly dregsers, most of whom seemed to be 'a diamond glittered in the golden | fused to take the usual curtain calls.'had played the king in “Boris” with 3 Tk SOPHIE BRAS] on the verge of fainting out of nerv- ousness for me! Fifteen minutes, Miss Braslau!” came the warning of the boy. 1 must confess to a moment of flerce trepidation. but I quickly controlled nysc1f and continiied to assure my muttering attendants that they should have courage, that all would go wel! Then, in_a surprisingly short time. the knock came again, and I could detect a sympathetic note in the invisible call-boy’s voice as he an- nounced: “Ready to go on. Miss Braslau!" PR \[Y time had come! With a beat- -\l ing heart, but with nerves that were still, T stepped out of my dress- ing room and descended the four lit- | tle steps that brought me into the 1 forced my way through the wings. waiting chorus. I could feel their ir terested eyes following me. They knew that this was my minute of minutes. Iturned to them and smile Dear, kindly peopie that they alway are: they smiled buck at me and some applauded silently with up-raised hands. “Coraggio!” one The great gold curtain was lowered ind the scene, a room in the palace f King Boris. was being finally ar- nged as 1 crept onto the vast stage nd quietly took my place behind a Jittle schocl desk. Near me, Leonora Sparkes as my sister. the princess. was already’ seated. She and I as the prince. were supposed to be at our lessons when the scene began. Trom tifee business side of the strange conch siell that, rises out of The Metropolitan stage near the foot- shis the head of Signor Marchesi, prompter, protruded, his face cathed in a broad and comforting le. he implored. with - prave, chil! 1l go verra fine if many gestures you brave chil’. If anvthing she go \rong oid Marchesi he feex every ving I was to find out in_ tlie years to come just how true it is that artists can depend in any emergency on that eresting personality in the prompt- er's box. Knowing the score, words and music of every opera, as well as the stage business for every one in- volved in it, including the chorus— 211 by heart—he is certainly not on sort of operatic miracle man. but the beginner's very best friend. Suddenly the stage became suffused with a flood of brilliant light and a carcely heard signal sent scene-men \d workers scurrying off. From the ide of the curtain rose the music that preceded the in cue. 1 quickly took the posi- lion that my imagination indicated izht very well be the position of a jing prince studying. Tt was to- Tiv different from the position given pue at rehearsall heart was |invisible background came the pat ter of applause to greet me. But oth- |érwise my debut went unnoticed. Not T | horseshoe as its wearer strove to take a good look at the little American | girl, trained in America, who had | been admitted to the hallowed circle of song. Much as I hate to confess it, the rising of that curtain created no | such sensation as invariably attends the debut of the brave movie prima donna who. after surmounting unbe- lievable obstacles, finds the reward of virtue in being allowed to sing “Car- men:"” * ko ok FP.OM the corner of my eye 1 watci- ed for the beat of the conduc- tor’s baton to give me the warning for my cue. My heart was going pit-a-pat., but I teok courage from the others on the stage, and when the time came for me to sing, the dry throat, which T had begun to think incapable of anything but a | hoarse whisger, became suddenly vi- brant. I felt my voice soaring to {the furthermost corners of the vast {auditorium, and a sort of intuitive fecling assured me that it was hold- {ing my listeners. Then my trepida- !tion sped from me, and I felt. glmost jat once. oddly al home and very 1 fthe end of my scene had come I seemed to have all the- assurance of an old-timer. Not until I was tak- ing my curtain calls and the gold- stockinged flunkey was handing me a jhuge bouquet of American beauties did a terrible trembling seize me, {and I nearly cpllapsed from fright. This after it wds all over, and I had apparently wo It was not until later experiences came to me that I fully,realized the risks I had run in not’giving way entirely—to a certain natural fear |before entering_on the stage and Ithen banishing it as something over, once on the stage. 1 used to try to ! master myself, which, in a way, was foolish, because it means simply a bad reaction of pent-up nerves. A few days later during a rest at rehearsal, conversation turned to |stage fright and nervousness. - A baritone of international fame, whose bel canto is the admiration of the musical world, told of a cousin of his who\had a beautiful tenor voice and had been signed to appear in opera. In rehearsal he had lived up to expectations, and instant success was predicted for him. Then came the dress rehearsal. The opera was “Cavalleria Rustfcana” - The open- ing notes of the Siciliana sounded, but not even a whisper came from the tenor, who in terror tried vainly to emit a {one, After what was thought toy be a syfficient rest, ‘the. music began again, with the ‘same result. They brought the poor. tenor water, an ‘applg and every first-aid remedy they could think of, but his voice re- fused to respond. . The experience killed ‘all his am- bitivn. He gave up all thought of, G ROOM OF THE METROPOLITA! (Photo by White.) | | ! | | much self-possessed. And by the time [on me. | mendous one, or, at least, sc_it look- ing, in which he gained considerable | prestige. | No one, not even the greatest, to be frightened at what may hap- | pen. Even the great Caruso broke on a high note in one of his early| performances at the Metropolitan, and | was 80 upset by the slip that he re i 5 ks P OPERA HOUSE, MAKING ~. Some little time after my debut, when I was singing the part of the Inn- keeper in the same opera, “Boris,” did = terrible demonstration of that befall me. I waited in the wings for my cue, calm, apparently, as the pro-| verbial cucumber. Then I stepped onto the stage. I was alone on it. The ‘first time T had been entirely alone, and @ sudden childisi: fright seized me such as I had krnown as a | little girl when left by myaelf in a large house. The scene wa: a tre- ed to me. My tongue literally clove to the roof of my mouth, and for the | instant T actually contemplated flight. | Had I indulged myself, my operatic career would have been over. As it :’ld& what “happened was almost as ad. ! * % % % I HAD been told hy-the stage di- rector that it was “inartistic’ to look at the conductor for ome’s cue. Hence I moved about the stage intent on my business, seenringly oblivious of either conductor or the huge audi- ence that sat stark and silent behind him, every one of those 10,000 eves Listening closely for my cue (for 1 knew my part well), I heard at last what I thought was it, and, forc- ing down my severe attack of stage- fright by sheer dint of will, I burst into my song. But horror of horrors! 1 at once perceived I had come in an entire half bar too soon, and so was singing ahead of the orchestra! In dismay I turned quickly to the conductor, Signor Toscanini, for help —all questions of .being ‘“artistic” thrown to the winds in my panic at'so awful an error. But Toscanini deliberately looked away from me in sheer disgust! = The world turned black before my eyes. How I fin- ished my song I do'not know to: tliis day. Had I been an “old hand at the game” I might have been able to extricate myself, but here was a trick of the trade.quite beyond me. So on I went, almost automatically, that awful half bar ahead of the music every minute of the way. My song over—I had no later appearance to” make—I. rushed from' the stage, dashed blindly through the wings and, still in costume, out through the stage entrance for the chorus. I ran to Brogdway in quest of a taxi- cab that could - carry -me home as quickly as possible! As I think of it now, I have to smile. I don't wonder that a man called after me: “Hey. kid!' _Where's the masquerade?” I remiember I'turned crimson with sud- den self-consciousness,. and tumbled into a’handy car and almost cried my address to the.driver. I cried all the way home. Oh, that fearful night of wakeful- ness! My ‘opera career ruined!’ All TP FOR A PERFORMANCE. up shattered to bits in a twinkling! How unexpected a pitfall! And I had been so terribly confident! For three days I did not go near| . nor did 1 hear from it. Fear lurked unéeasingly in m: heart that all was over “between u And then on the afternoon of the fourth day Adamo Didur, the basso, dropped in to have tea with me. He 3 o | centric -nonsense. s | stage and on stage a singer must be entirely must be clearly in evidence at all times. Gatti Casazza, the amiable di- | mous fhey are, the simpler and more |rector of the Matropolitan, brooks no temperamental outbreaks. BU {prone to make them, are singularly youthful and playful The man stars take a special delight in nicknaming their friends and fel- low artists. name to describe a characteristic or a peculiari Yesors after son, he would recall the nckname he hag first given him. Singular expres- sions, nerisms he immediately always insisted on calling me Sel- vaggia, the wild girl, on account ‘ef my thick and rather unmanageable | hair; not because of my conduct. One friend who used “capira hene” all the time in_conversation was never men- tioned by the great tenor except by those words. ed quiry, nickname he took care never to give offense. self. party at the Carusos, that the old opera this, I must confess, because the title role is a great contralto part. they all jeered me for my avarice, inasmuch ‘as the opera is considered in professional circles as dead as a lecture in Greek. v present, at once picked on mide” as his nickname for me and were not really temperamental; they were just bad-tempered. Nowadays |and one has to work too hard and have | earth! {too level a head generally for grand |joke, shook so with laughter that he didn’t even attempt to sing the first pera success to have time for ec- Above all, back “normal.” Common sense * K ox % T. if they are not notably “tem- peramental,” as the magazinef are opera singers Caruso was always ready with a and he never forgot it. rd, on meeting a per- or out-of-the-ordinary man- labeled. He Another friend he cali- from his constant in- “Eh Be,” But in his joking h bene?” I smile as one incident recalls it- I had once suggested, during a “Semiramide” be revived — But Scotti, 0 was “spoofed” me with it whenever he had the opportunity. suddenly came. gether & wa: An unexpected and rare opportunity We were singing to- in _the opera, “Crispino e mare.”” Scotti was Crispino and I| Comare, a witch who was given | to rising from the earth to perform Crispino’ ticularly dire bldding. thrilling scene, In a par- as 1 was about to descend into the earth again —through a trapdoor in the stage— so0 far as the audience could perceive, | Crispino crouched, awed and terrified 1 reached Ivhievously grinned at neath his “Semiramide! heard in the first few rows! But just as note Antonio mis- me from be- make-up and muttered to be ‘The un- was too much! of th to my me. top tening loud enough it expectedness of seriousness With all the scene, my top note went ignominious- me, and when I saw his card my heart almost stopped beating. “What—what are they saying?" I! greeted him breathlessly, as he en- tered the room. “Saying? Saying?” His brow knitted questioningly. “About me; about my horrible mis- take? He smiled comprehendingly. “What could they say? Nothing! Toscanini cursed a little. But we all make mistakes like that, some- times. ~Everybody has forgotten al- ready.” 1 could have swoomed with joy. * k ok X | D'PUR was right: The error I had | HEN Washington became dry on November 1, 1917, the word “bootlegger” was virtually unknown in everyday conversation. “Rum run- ner” was equally obscure. Such a de- nominator as “prohibition agent” had yet to be created. Since then various milestones have been passed in per- fecting machinery to forward to men the illicit concoctions of fruits and grains bearing alcohol. In the early days a bootlegger was conceded to be the sly, furtive individual who tapped ! one on the shoulder and whispered of | his wares. Today he may sit behind a desk, possibly in his residence. con- ducting his business via telephone. If he is successful he organizes a co- hort of retainers, distributers and procurers. Possibly he does not see the illicit goods at all. He is the di- recting genius, the deus ex machina of the underworld traffic. But he has enemies—has this pros- | 1y to pieces as 1 burst (fortunately!) He then, so delighted with his sank [, stopped. struck by the woma words. So she had noticed me, lean ing against the rail in back of the orchestra circle night after night, drinking in operas that 1 hoped some | day to sing. to laughter into_ the few bars of his next song! “Yes,” ®he went on, “I uster see This is the real opera singer. A |you a-sittin’ on the steps, all tried | bit wild, a bit childish, and veryout, during the intermissions, study-| lovable, ‘The bigger and more fa-|ing away at the score. An’ a few | £ years before T uster see ‘Gerry’ Far- charming they always show them- irar doin' the self-same thing_and selves. Some of the lesser lights are [ wonder the same about her. 1 can consumed with their own importance and spend a great deal of time try- ing to impress others with a superi; ority they do not possess. 2 And, in passing, always tell those as is goin’ to land right, it seem: So “Gerry” w too! 1 had never But I might have known it. a standee once, heard that before. | Few who I know of a few i such singers whose over-high opin-|jave ever ol il AL k er amounted to anything in fon ‘of tiénaselven and thelr powersltie world of song ever seem to huve{ 0 m lucrative contracts |y, enough money to be anything but and a high artistic place. One young | /& 9% e s ot ran tenor, who boasted he would displace ~ S s o ety "oreat tenor. who had | that. ~Kor ‘the good fairy that dis- hached and helped him gain an en- | tributes golden “throats works < fre-| quently, if not always, in the hum- tree to the Met, has had many years to regret his foolish megalomania. CA blest places. It is generally the child of the poor who ascends the heights 1 * k% ¥ of operatic success through talent, | RUSO'S memory will linger for-|hard work and indomitable courage: v et . .| Genius in music, ‘as in the other ever at the Metropolitan. He was | (Jehls in fusie. a8 'n o et the biggest of the galaxy of sta SDAratlc starrot e Tataire Mainot An: the biggest artistically and the big- gest of heart —and he was also the simplest and most unassuming. asked no special favors; he worked as hard “as of the snob about at the Met was his friend. the standee of today * x % THE social organization behind the scenes at the Met. in a way, an odd one. With all the warm in frequently He is, comer in the newest secondary roles. There was nothing |macy and friendliness that exist be- | him. Every oneliween artists while -“at work,” there | He joked |ig really very little mingling among and talked with them all, and was quick with his sympathy He was s He was never alon. was always surrounded by frien whom many were boyhood comrades in his beloved Naples. was to love the golden qualities of his heart. which were not less wonderful than his golden voice. - 1 soon grew to adore the opera and its every phase. terious cellars, packed with dormant scenery and fastastic “props”—a sort of history book come costumers and their myriad periods ready out a Caesar or a Brummel Grieux or a Pinkerton. trouble. opera house. of style, Each is such em- them while not at work. 2 distinct personality as to prefe ingly, prominence in social groups a from the others. But, among ourselves, Gatti Casazza is the inevitable leader, | in their mply adored at the he of and his wife, Mme. Alda, a very charm- | The director | ual observer | To know him |jng 45,9 natural consort. of the Met. is to the the personification of aloftness, calm, mystery. He invites neither familiarity nor advice. But this indifference, how ever, is merely apparent, as his friends Who kiow him well can’ testify. He is lan indefatigable worker. The fact that the opera B tic and financial apex never before attained is due entirely to Qis unceasing efforts and his marked_ability as an organizer and director. Signor ( before be- coming an impresario a civil en- and the efficiency with which ho ‘The profound mys- to life. The thrice to turs a Des When T had in a %5 otin: Bhok R freaicnily o5 wil ery department of the big se is perhaps the natural fruit en as three and four times a week. I 0f his carly scientific training used to hurry through my dressing None of atti's forces is more re- and make for an out-of-the-way cor- ner of the wings, from which I could watch the marvelous placing of the gigantic scenery, ing sight, ning_speed and efficiency. did"T love to witne: the wonderful perous-looking man. They have ex- acted from his stock millions of dol- lars in tolls throughout the United States during the past year and thrown gallons and gallons of his precious libations into the public sew- ers. These enemies are the revenue bureau's prohibition enforcement agents, and their jobs compare in menace and peril to those of any pro- tective force in the world. o Thousands of pairs of feet daily pass over one of Washington's pro bition warerooms, where confiscate: liquors are stored, awaiting either disposition of the cases in court or destruction by warrant of law. There is another group of confiscated wet | goods whieh is awaiting owners, but the latter are rather reluctant to claim their goods, since they know the minute they admit ownership a warrant will be handed to them. The warehouse is in the basement of the building at 1328 F street. It is but one deemed so terrible, a conclusion in which at least Toscanini seemed to agree, had passed almost unnoticed by the audience, and its mention brought nothing but a shrug from those behind the scenes. But Tos- canini was not quite so forgetful or forgiving. Even when ‘it was ex- plained that my error was not really a mistake on my part, but was due to the fact that 1 had followed the origi- nal Russian score from which 1 had studied, while the orchestra had used a slightly altered American edition, the great Italian maestro did not en- tirely forgive me. To him perfection is the sweet of life, all else t8 bit- terness. As for forgetting—years later, when, after he had been away from the Metropolitan a long time, I met_him, his first question wa: “Do you remember? Do you re- member?’ Did 1 remember? get? Mistakes of this sort—and my rath- er wild conduct after having mad the @ne 1 describe—have nothing whatever to do with e so-called “artistic temperamen of grand opera singers. The prima donnas of “The Outrageous Mrs. Palmer” and “Enter Madame,” not to mention countless other plays and books, are in many respects sheer fabrication. At one time in the history of opera there were some striking personali- ties, whose idiosyncrasies and gen- eral independability gained for them as much fame as their inartistic abil- ity. There was the tenor who thought nothing of notifying the director shortly before performance time tnat he would not sing that évening, or would sing a different opera from the one announced. There was the so- prano who insisted on a certain tenor singing with ber.. Then, -of course, there were other artists who gave ex~ hibitions of temper, of lack of cop- sideration for impressarios, the pub- lic ana fellow artists, and whose de- portment and dress were such as to cause people to wonder what next. These were just petty tyrants, Who today would not be tolerated, even ff their talents were great. They Will I-ever for- ('Y of four of the warehouses in Wash- ington. It occupies only two rooms of the building. But these rooms are full of spirits frumenti and otherwise. The other warehouses are located nearby, in the heart of the business section of Washington in_the rear of buildings of the same block on F street. ~ More than half a million dollars’ worth of liquor. in the shape of wines, JINSIDE THE HANDBAG, IN REAR. markable than the great chorus. The | iwo hundred or so men and women, mostly Italians, who make up this finely always a fascinat- crganized and drilled body, work harder, | Here ophie Braslau son, and a great many days before the season starts. In addition to sing- ing in_ practically every performance, they must learn the score and stage business of all new productions made during the year. A prodigious feat! They are mostly operatic aspirants, al- though many, now vkd, fige reconciled 1o remaining expert choriathrs as long as they can. 1'am often asked if ¥ would advis « young singer of unmikfakable talent 1o’ enter the chorus for operatic experi- ence. Invariably I answer no. 1 dp not deny , that the chorus offers splendid operatic training, ‘but f§r the mokt part it is better for the ng student to seek operatic experience in some one or more of the hundreds of the smaller opera houses all over Europe. 1 have found—and hard experience has been my teacher—that the beginner mus make mistakes, and that it-is far better 10 make them where they will not be seen! Volce training can be found in our country in fine abumdance. but ax or operatic experience, have it, by all means, where publicity is not quite so fierce as it is on Broadway or Soutn Salle street. But my own mistakes, such as they were (perhaps somewhat exaggerate: in my own mind, but none the less bit- ter for all that) brought steady im- provement. - My voice grew remarkably in size and color under the rigor of the famous batons that build operas at tiw Met. A day came when I was cast to create the title role of & new operz the dream of dreams. of every operati: student! The opera was anewi n American Indian stery, set to musi. by Cadman. With “Shanewis” came definite glory I was crowned star by the critics. But {even before that, as though realizing what was to come, from a mighty phonograph corporation came my first invitation to join with Caruso, Tetraz- zini and McCormick in singing for the millions. Confidentaly and eagerly I accepted was an easy task! A fortune fallen, as it were, from the sky! ——t Next week Mias Bras| | the reader into the room where “canncd” explains in takes - mys- musie In tall the ™ co ed in producing a disc that in perfect. Hibernating Fishes. ~OLD weather has a marked effect on some of the fresh water fish at the aquarium of the New York Zoological Society. When the tem- perature of the fresh water flowing through the tanks of the aquarium falls below 40 degrees, certain fish become very sluggish. The young vellow perch lie quietly on the bots tom of the tank, as evenly spaced as if put there Ly their keepers, and take little food. A low temperature af- fects young black bass in quite a different way. They stay poised some- where above the bottom, but crowded close together. *Fifty or more will often gather in-a compact mass, all facing in the same direction. The aquarium has several tanks of voung black bass, all groups of which show done as it is with light- '] really believe, than anyhody else at Above all | the opel Under Chorus Master Setti the setting of they work literally all day and most of dome scene in “Sans|the night, every day during the sea- NCLE SAM T the same curious habit. WAY OF THE BOOTLEGGER IS MADE DIFFICULT BY U SCENE AT ONE OF THE DESTRUCTION PARTIES OF PROHIBITION AGENTS, WHEN THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS® WORTH OF CONFISCATED LIQUOR WA! MPTIED INTO THE S WERS. whiskies, extracts and other similar | obtaining potations are stored in that region of |liquor is H. R. F street, according to official mates of local prohibition agents. The | speaking of premises are under and destruction of the Stephenson, chief of But_ Stephenson, in work. declines to as- or even the majority esti- | local agent he special guard.|sume all credit. More than half a_ million dollars’|of it for himseif. worth have been destroyed District_alone during the past two|of i years. Down the sewers and into the | si: in the| “Th he says. “There’s Rose, my. ant, and the members of the pol Potomac the alcoholic stream has |department detailed to prohibition poured. | enforcement work. They're the ones One-of the principal causes for the|who deserve credit. The superin- ™™o INTERESTING EXHIBITS IN ONE OF “THE GO MADB S#ILL, ONCE A WASH BOILER. AT RIGHT, VERNMENT WAREHOUSES. ON THE LEFT, A HOME- FOREGROUND, A ZINC CONTAINER, MADE TO FIT ) 588 other fellows have done most | | tendent of police has given eyery | possible co-operation in the work of enforcing prohibition. He has placed | special details at the service of the | bureau.and is always ready to step in and aid us in every contingency.” Linton Evans of the prohibitio force has been a participant in many of the raids, netting big “hauls” for the agents. Rose also has occupied.a similar position. But to the police ecialists in prohibition work ephenson gives the lion's share of |the commendation for the work. | These are Precinct Detectives Fowler | and Messer of the first precinct, Rohn of the sixth, McCormick and Wheeler |of the tenth. Denny Murphy of the ninth and a number 6f others throughout the city, including Police- man: Wilson, Lieut.. Sheetz, Lieut. Holmes and Detective Lowry of the first preeinct. From a survey of the work of these men the following methods of work by rum runners and boatleggers in the District has been { obtained: | Turn back in memory's book to the | early days of. prohibition in Wash- | ington. “The police were in chz=ge {of the enforcement of the “bone- dry” law. The Baltimore boulevard was filled with smuggling automo- | bilists, bringing a supply into the | desert from the nearby oasis. Police | Stopped them at the District line. {The Union station was carefully guarded and several arrests made, discouraging general traffic in that anner. Then came the day when arriving passengers from Baltimore on the electric line were arrested. filling . the ninth precinct station to | overflowing with prisoners and con- 1flscl(ed product. All this had the tendency to lift the burden of irmportation of liquor ! from the shoulders of the uninitiat- ed civilians with amateur devices and it on. specialisbs, then called otleggers,” would speed in from Baltimore with a supply for many. Stricter enforcement made peril more imminent for this class of men. Instéad of single cars, loaded down in the tonneau and easily .detected. by the heavily sag- ging springs, these men started to run, fleets o€ D e