A Breed Apart

Book excerpt: This is a true story of federal law enforcement officers & the war they waged on illegal organizations producing as much as 1,000 gallons of moonshine whiskey per day, seven days a week. It is written by a retired U.S. treasury agent & looks at the many facets of large-scale illegal production & distribution of whiskey in the southeast. Every incident in the book took place & is told as it happened. There are many humorous incidents & 40 photographs. The work involved raiding illegal distilleries, working undercover, chasing moonshine whiskey vehicles, investigating assaults on federal officers & numerous other aspects of law enforcement. From 1954 through 1964, ATF agents seized & destroyed 72,159 stills & 1,712,438 gallons of moonshine & arrested 71,266 violators. Twelve ATF agents were killed in the line of duty in this short ten-year period. Almost every agent in the southeast was injured, either by direct confrontation with liquor law violators or in their pursuit. It was a dangerous occupation. Improvisation is a unique & distinctive trait of the ATF agent. It sets him apart in that he has the latitude to make on-the-spot decisions & use initiative in apprehending criminals. ATF agents are "A BREED APART."