Yip Wah v. United States

The plaintiffs in error were convicted under two eounts of an indictment. The first count charged them with conspiracy to receive, conceal, buy, sell, and facilitate the transportation of smoking opium. The second charged them with feloniously receiving, concealing, buying, selling, and facilitating in the transportation of certain described smoking opium, knowing the same to have been imported contrary to law.

It was shown in evidence that the plaintiffs in error, together with one Herbert M. Samuels, wont from San Francisco to Grays Harbor, and there received from a vessel lying in the harbor a large quantity of smoking opium, consisting of approximately 1,000 tins, which they thereupon packed in six trunks for transportation to San Francisco, Cor which point they purchased tickets and cheeked the trunks. While being placed on the train, one of the trunks was accidentally broken open, and two cans of opium fell out. The baggage master, on discovering that fact, notified a deputy collector of customs, and later the plaintiffs in error were arrested and removed from the train, and the six trunks containing the opium were seized, and were opened with keys taken from the person of…