bootlegging

     The original "bootleggers" sold alcohol when alcohol was illegal in the United States, in the 1920's. A bottle of alcohol would fit in the smuggler's boot, supposedly--hence the name "bootlegger". Bootleggers were very popular with most people. Although a percentage of voters large enough to amend the U.S. Constitution voted for prohibition ( the prohibition of alcohol ), many people broke the law by patronizing bootleggers and visiting "speakeasies" ( illegal bars ). According to the informal history of the prohibition era ( 1918-1932 ), there were more speakeasies than there had been bars, and more people visited them.  Prohibition is also credited with the rise of organized crime in America. There was crime before prohibition, of course, but bootlegging or "rum running"  ( smuggling alcohol from Canada or another foreign country ) made the criminals popular among otherwise law-abiding citizens, leaving a legacy of  "the noble experiment" that we may still be living with today.