The Rea! Article and a Japanese Substitute: Spirits of Wine and Colouring A case of considerable interest in view of the extensive sale in Shanghai of spurious spirits bearing the labels of well-known brands, an evil which has been held to be responsible for a large percentage of crime locally, was begun in the Japanese Court last Friday. J. Hookabe, of 1479 Woosung Road, was committed for trial upon charges of injuring the credit of others, namely Messrs. John Walker & Sons Ld., by using dishonest means, having fraudulently and falsely represented certain spirituous liquor to be whisky man-factured by that firm, and further with procuring for himself pecuniary gain by cheating others, contra-ary to Article 233 of the Japanese Criminal Code. The examining magistrate, Police Inspector Kobayashi, sentenced the defendant to 20 days' imprisonment upon a third charge of selling liquor without a licence.
Mr. R. F. ©. Master, who appeared for the agents of John Walker & Sons, said that the defendant had put up spurious whisky in that company's bottles and bearing that company's labels. "Johnnie Walker" was a very well known-brand, widely drunk Shanghai. The liquor purporting to be "Johhnie Walker" resembled exactly the original in colour, but was made with spirits of wine, coloured with brown sugar and flavoured with a little genuine whisky. Only the capsule differed from the genuine bottles. Pracfically neat spirits of wine was used. Counsel's clients and the police took a very serious view of the matter. The genuine whisky was a perfectly harmless spirit, whereas the former would drive people off their heads. It had a deleterious effect. on the health and brain of any one who took it. Police records showed that a large percentage of crimes of violence in Shanghai had been due to the drinking of such neat spirit. As a result of inquiries instituted by the agents of John Walker & Sons, the defendant was found with extra filling bottles. One bottle of the spirit was first of all obtained from a general shop in Miller Road with the object of securing a sample. A dozen were afterwards bought and the shopkeeper gave information as to having purchased them from the defendant. Empty Johnnie Walker bottles, a filling apparatus and a quantity of spirits of wine were found at the man's home.
Det. Sub-Inspector—Conduit stated that he received information that the defendant was at the Miller Road shop. Witness proceeded there immediately and questioned the defendant. He was asked whether he could supply some cheap whisky and replied that he could. The price would be $1 a bottle. Witness produced apparatus used by the defendant to
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.