The SULTAN of the NIGHT

NZ Truth, Issue 1153, 5 January 1928, Page 7

The SULTAN of the NIGHT

An Echo

Signs!

IT is as fair to 1 Colonel Knott as it is to "N.Z. Truth," to emphasize that the indications of dope trafficking, whilst admittedly very strong, at present only specifically concern Dunedin. The colonel's allegations last year were embodied in more or less sweeping generalization. The question is: Does the Dunedin discovery reflect a Dominion - wide demand for drugs or is it merely local?

(From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Dunedin Representative.) The minds of too many writers are filled with the all-rriastering ecstasy of yellow perils, foreign drug-traffickers, and the like; their pens so clogged with conventional scares; their eyes so blind that, akin, to ill-focussed cameras, they apprehend the distance but fail to remark the neighborhood near at hand. But there are young men and women in this country who bow down before the Sultan of the Night — the dealer in drugs.

YES, the peril of drug-taking among the youth of New Zealand is apparently very real, and organized, not alone by yellow men, but white devils as well. For devils they undoubtedly are. The proof? It is here, in abundance, and Dunedin has provided the example in object lessons which should awaken the people of this country to a .langer that is not the outcome of feverish imaginings. Less than a year ago, Colonel Knott, an officer of the Salvation Army, made some startling declarations concerning the disquieting extent to which drugtaking had increased in New Zealand. The Colonel's allegations were promptly discredited, and >the public was forced to the somewhat unwilling conclusion that the article was but another specimen of eloquent scaremongering. But was it? I Unless the recent investigations

Society Scandal

of "N.Z. Truth" are nothing more than a collection of most extraordinary coincidences, then Colonel Knott has been upheld in almost every particular.

These inquiries were first inspired after "Truth" had unmasked the scandalous behavior on the part of "smart" young men at a certain bay in Dunedin, one of whom received the chastisement undoubtedly due to him.

One of the men who escaped similar punishment, was reputed to live upon the fruits of his persuasive powers over foolish youths possessed of a little money.

It was further suggested that he supplemented his "earnings" by purveying drugs to women who craved the exhilaration essential to their maintaining' the pace set by their kind.

Discreet probings into the history of this man confirmed the general suspicion that, however intelligent his .surreptitious operations upon gullible youth, there was scarcely the scope for satisfactorily maintaining his expensive mode of living.

The question then was: From what source did he derive this extra income?

Again, if the answer were that suggested by "Truth's" informant, what methods had been adopted?

And between question and answer reared the high wall of doubt as to how the system might be exposed.

It was later established that the suspect consorted with associates whose characters were not the most commendable of repute; that his own sallow face and general appearance bore the imprint of drug-taking.

But by what means did he succeed in conveying his deadly wares?

Here, indeed, was the problem, and one which took weeks to resolve, illicit dispensers of unwholesome stimulants being stealthy in movement and astute- of method.

Consistent delving in the field or probability at length yielded the information that this man-about-town was a member of a supposedly select small club with somewhat dubious articles of association.

Thfi activities of this particular club w N ere not beyond suspicion, it being suggested that the members, of both sexes, were little mure than immoralists, and that some were "snow"

uddicts

By Appointment

But there remained the problem of discovering by what means this "club" was able to consistently indulge in the frightful practices which can have but one conclusion — complete degeneracy and wrecked physique. /

Curiously enough, the answer was forthcoming 1 in two ways, .under strange circumstances, and by sheer chance.

Shortly before eleven o'clock, on a bitter, wet November evening, a, moderately well-dressed man about 35 years of age was seen standing at the corner of upper Dowling and Princes Streets, apparently waiting for someone to keep an appointment.

A passer-by was attracted by the semi -swaying posture of the man on the corner, the staring, lack-

lustre expression in his eyes, the

pallid face; in short, the pitiable

condition and attitude of a confirmed debauchee.

In view of the concentrated inquiry which had been instituted on the subject of dope-running in Dunedin, the momentary attention drawn to the shaking wretch changed to a feeling of intense interest in the man's subsequent movements, especially as the hour of eleven had not yet struck, and to ail intents there was someone expected.

Walking some fifty yards further along the road, the observer crossed

the street, walked quickly back some 30 yards and took shelter in a doorway, just as 11 o'clock sounded from the post office etyjek tower.

A moment later, and a young man hurriedly descended the steps which lead down from Tennyson Street to Princes Street, glanced nervously from left to right, and then joined the man who waited.

Greetings were exchanged between the two, the newcomer parted with some money, received something in exchange and then, taking hasty leave of the man he met barely a minute before, swiftly remounted the steps.

Owing to the distance, and the fact that rain was falling heavily, it was difficult to ascertain just what the "something" represented. That the transaction was surreptitious is undoubted.

The man who received tue money buttoned the collar of his trench coat and, seemingly still half stupid from the effects of his narcotic indulgences, walked very slowly northwards

The watcher who witnessed this strange meeting waited until the two men had passed from sight, then ran across the street, and, having reached the steps, commenced to climb the first short flight.

At the top of the second section of

steps his attention

was kept near the locality where the discovery was made, no confirmation was forthcoming. Night after night the neighborhood was watched for a repetition of the mysterious appointment but it was not until exactly a week afterwards that suspicion became confirmed by fact, and the human wreck stood once more at the appointed place, to De again met by the same man. The second occasion was practically a replica of the first — a rapid exchange, and an equally hurried departure. Although "Truth's" representative, to whom the matter was referred, tried his utmost to get a glimpse of the men concerned in this ghastly contract, he was unsuccessful, and^ it is likely that in his efforts to achieVe this he was seen by the infamous wretch who was thus plying his trade, for neither of the two men was again seen under similar circumstances. But it was established beyond doubt that the human fiends responsible for setting such machinery into motion were using the barrels of cheap countain pens a s .nstruments to their nefarious operations among the youth of Dunedin. Those particles found inside the pen lying on the steps happened to be "snow" — what further proof could be necessary? "With the rubber

was drawn to the HIDING THE DOPE.— The above is a sac, or tube, rescattered parts of a photograph of the fountain-pen "dope" moved, the barrel cheap fountain pen container and the book apparently de- of an average lying on the land- signed to conceal the same unlawful fountain pen would ing, and apparently possessions. \\o\A about two dropped from the drachms of either inside pocket of a man's coat. i cocaine or heroin — both deadly in their But this seemingly innocent ex- effects on the nervous system — which,

planation was quickly negatived when it was found that although the gilt nib was slightly damaged, the nib section was wrenched apart from the barrel, whilst inside the barrel were a few grains of a white powdery substance! Could this be a me;o coincidence, *or, was it an explanation of the strange incident witnessed only a few minutes before?

For some days afterwards there was

no conclusive explanation of the mys-

tery, and although a strict surveillance

*****

although valued by chemists at not more than 5/- per drachm, would in all probability be sold to addicts at any figure up to 2000 per cent, profit. The humiliating element about this insidious traffic is that although the two well-dressed Celestials are believed to be concerned, the major risks are undertaken by white men — addicts

who themselves have fallen within the

seductive radius of this deadly, ruinous

fascination

AN alleged " fountain-pen, but a proved container for dope; a mysterious book, within whose pages was a cunning device for secreting a phial. What is the reasonable deduction from this?

Is this mere coincidence? or, rather, are we, as the judge would tell the jury, entitled as "reaeo nable men" to say these are indications of the canker of a widespread dope traffic?

And it seems, according to one who must, of necessity, be nameless, that the incidence of this insane indulgence is by no means accidental.

For instance, who is the man with an avowed intention of booking his passage to Sydney early in the year — and for one very definite reason? Does he remember a certain afternoon when, half tipsy, and in a moment of over-confidence, he boasted of knowing how to get drugs through illicit avenues into this country?

And does a woman from Timaru pay periodic visits to Australia with the identical object in view?

Can a member of a party at Broad Bay explain away his glazed eyes and pallid face — so common among dope fiends — as he walked slowly up George Street, late one afternoon?

Or are all these things sheer coincidence?

But the saddest part of a very sordid business is the number of women who are secret addicts — and they are not all elderly women seeking the

Strange Discovery

alchemy of rejuvenation and artificial vivacity.

And this damning fact was brought to the notice of "N.Z. Truth" under the strangest of circumstances, in a way absolutely unexpected.

One night, two men walked into a cafe, ordered supper,, and whilst awaiting the food, they took stock of those who came and went, and meanwhile engaged in a conversation suitable to their common interests.

Quite inadvertently, one man remarked ■ the deep earnestness with which a young man and woman, whose ages would be in the neighborhood of 28, were discussing a book lying beside the former's plate.

Unobtrusively, the observer drew his companion's attention to where the other couple sat, and as he did so witnessed what appeared to be one of the most peculiar transactions ever effected in a Dunedin cafe.

Opening her handbag, the young woman extracted some notes and handed them under the table to the man who sat opposite her.

In return she received the book, laid it on her . lap, and then, glancing around the practically deserted room, quickly opened the novel and began turning the pages.

Thoroughly mystified by this time, the two men covertly watched her from where they sat, and were astounded to see her remove what seemed to be a small bottle or phial from the interior of the book, place the bottle in her handbag, close the book and place it on the seat beside her.

Five minutes later the woman, visibly nervous and highly strung, rose to go, and when her companion had paid their bill the pair left the- premises. But the book remained on the chair. Whether, in her excitement, she had forgotten the existence of the novel, or- whether its use had become exhausted, is not known, but one of the men who witnessed the procedure soon grained possession of it. It is now in the possession of "Truth."

A subsequent examination showed that a small cavity, some two

inches square, had been cut from

the centre of the novel, but there was no positive evidence as to what had reposed there, although the probable answer to the question was not difficult to frame. Was this another link . . . ?

Fabulous Profit

But if this furnishes no proof of system, what is the explanation?

At the very least it illustrates the ingenuity with which drug-runners introduce their victims to a foul and devastating practice, and the lengths to which their, agents will /jo in order to extort the profits arising out of the weak-willed.

Another method, said to have been adopted from time to time, is that of sending drugs concealed in newspapers, and mailed in' the ordinary way.

Under this system, it is estimated that cocaine or heroin, worth as much as £25 to some poor wretch who had acquired the craving for these stimulants, could .be sent over from Australia or some foreign country and be practically I ' certain to elude detection.

It will be . seen that the solution of such an enigma, with its frightful possibilities of untold human wreckage and life-long misery, is, indeed, a flifflcu.lt one to unravel, and in view of what has been related ' it seems that the contemptible organizers of this infamous traffic will bring any influence, employ the most ingenious methods, in order to gain their ends.

Their trails are most carefully covered, but there will come the day of striking a balance, when the shadow of retribution will overcast their steps and justice set the seal to an evil record of shame and humiliation.