Fred Kesselring, who conducts an auto repair shop on Greene and Second streets, and his aged father, Sylvanus Kesselring, of Sand Hill, are in the county jail awaiting an arraignment before Squire O'Neill on a charge of illicit manufacture of corn whiskey. They were arrested at noon on Friday by Sheriff Roberts and Chief Putnam and it appears that the officers got their men "with the goods on them."
There have been complaints for several months that all was not right at the Kesselring home, which is located on Cow Run, just back of Sand Hill, and on one or two occasions in the past the sheriff has searched the place but without results.
On Friday morning, several Sand Hill boys were out hunting and were ordered off of the place by Mr. Kesselring. Their suspicions were aroused and the boys persisted in investigating. When they became too insistent to suit the old gentleman, he grabbed up a club and smashed a 5-gallon jug that had been secreted in a sack near the hog pen.
The boys smelled the fumes of whiskey, and one of their number hurried to a telephone and called the sheriff. The other remained on watch, and the officers made a hurried run to the place. They had a search warrant and began a systematic search.
Knocking off a 2-inch oak partition in the cellar, they discovered a tunnel that extended back under the other part of the house, and here they found a secret cellar, all roofed over and covered with dirt so that it could not be detected by anyone on the outside. In the cellar, the officers found 8 barrels of mash, a 6-hole hotplate, a coil and other equipment, showing that it was one of the most complete distilleries yet found in the county.
The officers brought the owner of the place to the city and then arrested the son. According to the sheriff, both father and son have signified their intention of pleading guilty.
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