Federal prohibition agents "cannot be expected to reverse their collars and go out with song books in their hands" if they expect to catch liquor-law violators, Col. Robert E. Frith, former Federal prohibition administrator for Southern California, testified yesterday at the trial of John H. Wyncoop, former chief field agent under Frith, who yesterday went on trial before a jury in Federal Judge Henning's court on a charge of illegal conversion of evidence.
    Col. Frith testified that prohibition agents often are called upon to have liquor in their possession and to take drinks in order to catch liquor-law violators. The former administrator denied, however, that he ever gave any of his agents permission to take liquor to their homes, as Wyncoop is charged with having done.

    Wyncoop testified that he had taken liquor to his home "in the performance of his duty as a Federal prohibition agent." He admitted that by so doing he had disobeyed the rules laid down by Maj. Dixon, then assistant administrator in charge.
    "Maj. Dixon held himself superior to the prohibition agents," Wyncoop stated. "He was very haughty and hard to approach. I knew that if I had liquor in my possession I could more easily get bootleggers to believe that I was handling booze and therefore make it easier to arrest bootleggers."

    James Dausman, former prohibition agent, said the agents had to take drinks and have liquor in their possession if they expected to get on "the inside" of bootleggers' activity. Several other former agents were called upon to tell of the methods employed in obtaining evidence and supported Wyncoop's contention that a Federal agent had to take drinks and possess liquor if he wanted to make any "knock overs."
    Wyncoop is charged with having converted twenty-nine bottles of liquor to his own use, instead of turning it into the government warehouse.
    Closing arguments in the case will be made by Defense Counsel Al McDonald and Asst. U. S. Atty. Armstrong this morning. The case is expected to reach the jury by noon today.

Source:

Unknown, "Ruses of Dry Agents Cited, Must Carry Rum to Catch Peddlers, Frith Says," The Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles, Wednesday, 16 March, 1927, p. A8.