Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1893-08-24
MoRALIST AND POLICY KING.
The History or Samuel ]. Levy Told
interestingly.


Polioy-wrltiDg Syndicate.
The following appeared in the Phila-
delphia Times on Sunday in regard to
the career Of Samuel j. Levy, the gam
bier and policy king.
Samuel ]. Levy, the alleged moralist,
who has been assisting the police and
detective force in their wild scramble to
avoid the humorists who are nightly
burglarizing business houses situated
within the protecting shadow of the city
hall, by aiding in the search for alleged
numerous and blood-thirsty policy
Writers, has been traced to his native lair.
AS related in the Times, Levy, who
was star witness and stool-pigeon in
the effort to convict number of policy
penmen of this city, was arrested last
Wednesday in Wilmington for backing
policy there, He proved to be the rep
resentative of New York policy syndi-
cate, and his object in thus cruelty pull
ing the wool over the eyes of Philadel-
phia's near-sighted detective force was
to drive out local hackers and writers
and then substitute therefor his own
syndicate.
Levy, whose criminal record is as
long as the list of depredations lately
committed within five blocks of the
city hall, evidently had little trouble in
convincing the Philadelphia sleuths that
he was a moralist of the first water.
When questioned last Thursday as to
the record and whereabouts of their
protege they stated that he was "a
mysterious fellow and hard to find"
Nevertheless the record of Samuel J.
Levy, moralist and assistant to the
Philadelphia Police Department, has
been unearthed. He first came to this
! city in the fall of 1884. He came in
hurry. The fast-riding horse upon
which he mace his escape from the au-
thorities of Kent county, Del, died
| from the effects of that race between his
master and the officers of the law.
| There are So criminal cases standing
| open upon the buckets at Dover, Della
wares capital, against Moralist Levy.
| The indictments are left in force not be-
cause the people or Dover wish to get
Moralist Levy back, but, on the con-
| trary, to keep him from returning.
Samuel is the scion of family no.
torious for its disregard of the law. His
father, Jacob Levy, used to keep gen
eral store at Maston's Corner and at
other places in Kent county, Delaware.
| He was kind of three-card monte man.
| His creditors used to guess in which of
| the stores constable would find the
| goods they had sold him and usually
| guessed wrong.
Later on Jacob kept hotel at kits
Hammock, local summer resort along
the bay, in the same county. In con-
nection with the hotel he sold liquor at
retail. He didn't confide the latter fact
to either the United States or State au-
thorities, but they found it out, and
| when kits Hammock got too sultry
| for him Jacob moved to Dover, and in
connection with his three sons, Henry,
Lewis and Samuel, started distillery.
Both father and sons were too enter
prising to contine their business to
manufacturing and wholesaling.
There is great thirst in Dover, espec-
tally late at night and on Sundays, for
liquor at retail, and Jacob, Henry,
Lewis and Samuel proceeded to allay II.
They did this without going through
the formality of getting State license.
AS consequence the criminal docket
of Kent county looks like genealogi-
cal tree of the Levy family. From 1880
to 1884 Samuel's name graces the docket
4
him range from assault and pistol point
ing to going in cahoots with the negro
chicken thieves of the neighborhood,
AT the October term of court, 1880,
Jacob Levy, together with Lewis and
Samuel, was tried for an assault and
battery upon the person of Bertha Gold
stein.
In addition to other accomplishments
Samuel is q gambler, and the criminal
docket at Dover shows numerous in.
dictments against him for gambling.
Samuel is also something of fighter.
In March, 1882, George w. West, a
Dover policeman, endeavored to arrest
two men who were pounding each
other. Samuel promptly pounded the
policeman. 1t cost him $40, with trim
mings.
After successfully and mysteriously
eluding conviction on over 20 indict-
ments for selling liquor Samuel was al
last found guilty, and in April, 1893
fined 500 and costs and Imprisonment
for three months.
In April, 1884, Samuel was indicted
for assaulting some more. This time
the victim was Charles Burton.
Indictments for illegal liquor selling
follow until they become monotonous
and in October, 1854, Uncle Sam took 0
hand and started after Samuel for vic.
lating the revenue laws. When Samuel
heard that the revenue men were after
him he was in the court house under
arrest for violating the State liquor laws.
He induced the court to permit him to
go out in company with an officer to
find bail. He saddled his horse, mounted
him, stuck the persuasive end of re-
volver under the officers nose, said
'tra-la," and started gaily on his journey
to Philadelphia, where he was destined
to assist the police and detective force
in reforming the town and keeping
things and burglaries out of the news
papers.
This was nine years ago. In the cool
of the evening, nowadays, old settlers in
Dover bring their chairs out on the
pavement, and gathering in little groups
around the trees in Court House Square
which they lovingly call "The Green,
prop up their feet and talk over the
exploits of the Levy outlaws. Yester.
day evening one of the old-timers re,
lated how Samuel assisted his male pro
genitor six years ago in swindling a
Philadelphia firm. Jacob owed money
to the Philadelphians, and evidently
proposed to keep on owing it.
The firm discovered that Jacob owned
a large quantity of brandy at Harling-
ton, Del. They levied on it Jacob lay
low and waited until they had stamped
the barrels ready for<sale. Then with
Samuol's assistance he organized mob
took the brandy back and with it reve-
nue. stamps to the amount of $500 with
which tho gnileless Quaker firm had