The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-08-23
MURDERS BY HIRED BRAVOS.
. SERIES or CRIMES BY JTAL-
JAMS ~ NEW ORLEANS.
o,,r,on Divided as to whether the Luciano
Assassinations Are the Result OF
Vendetta or the Work OF the Maha--An-
r tonic Luciano Killed by His Foes NJ Last

Assass2natiOnR are inc heSuat OF
vendetta or the work OF the Mafia--An.
= ,o,,o Luciano Killed by His Foes nj Last
New ORLEANS, Aug. 22.-"Does the Malta
avis, again in New Orleans? Twelve
.ao,s ago it was crushed out completely
hv the parish prison affair. for which eleven
Italians were lynched but In the opinion
If some persons it has been revived.
Conditions have changed since then, A
new Italian immigration has poured into
! o,isi,na and New Orleans, which knows
nothine of the parish prison vengeance.
Raj ween 10000 and $4,000 Italians, practi-
ca,lv all from Naples and Sicily, have set
tsd here and throughout southern Louisi-
ana, mainly in the sugar country Have
they brought back the Malta? There are
MANY who believe they have.
The lower class Of Italians in particular
0re convinced OF it, and have gone back
70 their old condition Of fear and trem-
Hing This was shown at the funeral the
other dav of Antonio Luciano, a so-called
N,fa victim Although he was one Of the
most popular Italians In New Orleans not
one of his fellow countrymen was pail
bearer. and the coffin was borne to the
crave by reporters and policeman.
To those who have given the subject close
study the recent Italian murders and shoot
,np ARRAYS in New Orleans and its vicinity
do not show the existence of the Malta.
hut merely revival Of the vendetta, with
some aggravating feature, such as the re-
moyal of the bravo or hired assassin The
Luciano case, according to this view, is
a grand vendetta.
How many have been murdered in it
II is impossible to say, for the trouble began
in the country and came here year ago
from Donaldsonville. Antonio Luciano,
The head Of the Luciano clan, was above
the average Neapolitan in intelligence
and energy. A resident of this country
for fifteen years, he had mastered the Eng
sh language and had become quite
Americanized in some Of his ideas. He
had acquired q small fortune, which he
invested In macaroni factory In Donald
sonvlle
At was there that he came into conflict
with the Calamia clan over a contract for
supplying paste to some OF the Italian
stores In the neighborhood, The quarrel
sworn between the two clans.
As Luciano was much the weaker in
forces he sold out his business at Donald
sonville at a great sacrifice and removed
to New Orleans where he opened grocery
o Poydras street and at once developed u
good business His departure from Dom
al son vile was followed by a number OF
murders which were never cleared up, but
which the police attribute to the quarrel
between Luciano and the Calamias.
Luciano In New Orleans prepared for the
attack which he knew would come sooner
or later He sent over to Naples. where the
Lucianos are strong In numbers, for rein
forcements. His brother, Salvatore Luci-
ano, and his cousin, Luigi Luciano, came
over to protect him He also had several
other Italians in his employ as guards.
The store was we'll stocked with arms
and ammunition and provided with peep
holes through which to fire in case Of All
attack. But, In spite OF all these precau-
tons, when the Calamia faction descended
on them suddenly one night the Lucianos
were taken by surprise.
Salvatore Luciano and ono Of the guards
were killed outright and Luigi Luciano
was wounded Antonio, by his quickness,
escaped the murderers and shot three OF
The police arrested dozen Italians.
including Antonio Luciano. The latter took
his arrest goodnaturedly. He said that he
had become thoroughly Americanized, that
Justice through the courts, and that he in
tended 10 prosecute to the bitter end the
men who killed his beloved brother Sal
vatore.
Salvatore Luciano was buried the next
day In imposing Italian style. The crowd
around the coffin was composed mainly OF
women, for the male Italians had stayed
away from the funeral, not wishing to be-
come mixed up with the vendetta. There
WAS one man present, however, restaurant
keeper Of good repute, by the name of
Bartolo Ferrari, who bent over the coffin
and with tears In his eyes kissed the dead.
AS he did SO, Antonio Luciano, who had
been allowed to attend the funeral under
the charge Of a deputy sheriff, sprang on
him, shot him through the heart. and beat
out his brains with the butt Of pistol
Luciano became suddenly calm as the Off
GERS approached him and said as he handed
them the pistol:
Take me out and hang me now He
murdered my brother. and killed him. :"
While in prison Luciano lost his wife and
child through an accident. He was taken out
Of Jail for second time for funeral At
the side Of his wife's coffin ne became
violently insane, and his grief was 80 in
tense that every one expected him to drop
dead from his frenzy, But he recovered
and in time was tried and acquitted.
Another brother, Giovanni Luciano, had
been brought from Italy to look after Anto-
MOS affairs while he was in prison, and with
him came sister to care for the mother
less children. They came just in time to
hear OF Antonios assassination.
Antonio knew we'll that his life was in
danger He had received frequent warn
ings Especially impressive were the
threats brought to him by one Giuseppe
Messina, a poor shoemaker, who advised
him to make no new friends and never to
enter an alley way after dark.
A few days after giving Antonio Luciano
this advice Messina was wayaid by as
sassins and shot. He escaped with his
life by a miracle
The police have locked him up because
he won't tell who shot him. They believe
that he has full knowledge of facts that
would solve the question, not only OF the
attack on himself, but OF that on Luciano.
Their theory Is that he was chosen to kill
Luciano but refused and instead warned the
doomed man, and upon this breach !of
faith he was condemned TO death.
Messina having refused to murder Lu-
ciano, the assassins had to look elsewhere
for bravo They found him in Samuele
sugar refinery. Spare made Luciano's ac-
quaintance about week before the muir
der for the murdered man 'disregarded
Messina's warning to make no new friends.
They were soon bosom friends, and during
the next few days they went everywhere
together
Luciano wanted a photograph of his
dead wife, and Spare took him to pho
tographer's studio on Canal street. The
bravo had been there several times and
had studied the field and apparently ar
l. - kkA