The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-07-25
POOL ROOM RAID.
Chief Murphy Captures q
Morse Instrument, Two
Telephones and
Three Men.
RACING RESULTS SENT
An Effort to Be Made to In
dict the Officials Of the
Western Union.

Police Justice Potts in the First Grim
NAL Court, this morning, held Harry
Roberts, thirty-one years old, a telegraph
operator, of H-ackensack; John Gray.
street. and John Flick, a saloonkeeper, of
No. 1876 York street. in 81, COO bail each for
tho Grand Jury on the charge of pool
selling. They were captured Saturday
afternoon by Chief of Police Murphy,
Sergeant Archibald, Superintendent of
Telegraph Foley and Detective Larkins.
who raided Fick's saloon and the club
rooms over it, and secured evidence in the
form of a telephone and the telegraph in
strument over which the returns from
the race tracks were received.
For several weeks Chief Murphy had
been aware tina pool selling on horse
races was being conducted in three places
in lower Jersey City, but he could get no
evidence against them. He sent police
men who had lately been appointed and
were little known to place money on the
horses, but they were spotted and re-
fused admission to the pool rooms. The
Chief finally decided that if he couldn't
get violence of pool selling direct he
would at least stop the business by cutting
off the source of news through which the
pool rooms kept posted. He detailed
Superintendent Foley to locate the wire
which he was satisfied furnished the race
news direct from the tracks. Foley after
much hard work traced the wire to
Fick's saloon. No. 135 York street, n
learned that there was a Morse llstru-
ment in the clubhouse above the saloon
The. Chief on learning this made a sworn
complaint before Justice of the Peace
Mccormick, who issued a warrant for the
raiding of Fick's place. Chief Murphy
and his officers went to the place Ut three
o'clock Saturday afternoon. Sergeant
Archibald was left in the saloon in charge
of Flick and the bartender, while the Chief
with the other policemen went upstairs.
There are three doors opening frum the
clubrooms into the hall. The Chief tried
each door only to find it locked, ard
there was no response to his repeated
knocking.
Finding tina they could not get in that
way, the Chief, Foley and Larkins climbed
out of the rear hall window to a Shed at
the rear Of the club rooms, and forcing q
window they entered. In the rooms they
found two men, who gave their names as
Jack Gray and Harry Roberts. The
Chief asked them where the telegraph III
strument was, and Roberts replied thai
there was no nstrumen there. SupefiE-
tendent Foley found it under one CT The
front windows between the house and q
large sign which extends across the front
of the building, took it into tie room,
and found hat it was working He
learned from Roberts what his call
was, and was soon receiving over the
ticker the results of the second race at
Brighton Beach, and the betting on the
third race. He received the results OF
the races at Brighton, and at a western
track, and cut the instrument off and
took it as evidence.
There were two telephones of the Hud-
son Telephone Company in the room.
One of the bells rang and Chief Muir
ply answered the call. Some one asked
why they had not received the result of
the second race. at Brighton. The man
at the other end of the telephone seemed
to suspect that something was wrong.
and asked who was there. Jack" said
Chief Murphy.
Jack who5s asked the man.
why, Jack Grey, of course" said the
Chief.
other end.
Roberts"
Then the man at the other end put a
poser which staggered the Chief. Who
am I?" he asked.
That ended the conversation. Chief
Murphy had Superintendent Foley TAXI
the telephones to Police Headquarters to
be put in evidence with the telegraph in
strument. Roberts, the telegraph opera
tor, said he was employed by the Western
Union Telegraph Company. The Chief de-
clared this morning that he would use
every possible effort to get evidence to
secure the indictment of the officials OF
the Western Union Telegraph Company,
who rented the instrument to Flick.
knowing that it was to be used for
betting on horse races and MOTH
ing else. In 1898 the Chief got
evidence that the company in this city
was delivering green goods kilograms
He told the manager that the practice
must stop. No attention was paid to his
warning and the green goods men con-
tinued to receive kilograms in cipher
from their victims. The Chief sent de-
t~ectives to three different cities and had
them send fake dispatches to the adj
dresses of the green goods men. He then
went before the Grand Jury and secured
an Indictment against the company.
Then the officials called on him and as
sured him hat they were ignorant of
any intention on the part of their local
agent to aid green goods men and that
thereafter they would hold any agent
who refused to aid the police in suppress
ing crime responsible. The Indictment
was reconsidered and a strong present.
ment made against the company. Chief
Murphy asserts that if the Grand Jury
indicts the officials of the company the
sale of pools on horse racing will cease.