The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-08-30
GANDLED WiTH POLICE NEAR.
FORTIFIED TEMPLE or CHANCE
NMERCER STREET rs RAIDED.
Roulette Game and Po0iroom Fictrfshed
Close 10 the Poiice station-Sand
ruled walls and Tunnels to the street
Constitute Part OF the Equipment

ENAeo Wstss essu w. Wv
Constitute Part OF the Equipment.
A combination gambling house and pool.
room, one Of the largest that has attempted
to do business lately, was raided yesterday
afternoon by tho combined detective forces
Of Inspectors Hogan and Schmittberger.
The place Was In rHmshackle one story
building at $50 Mercer street. An average
baseball player could have thrown ball into
the place while standing on the steps OF the
Mercer street station. Acting Captain
GouTAo Of that station didn't kno. any
thing about the raid until ii Was all over.
Then, accompanied by two OF his men. he
got there.
The raiders got eight prisoners and three
wagon loads Of gambling stun and poolroom
fittings including four telephones and tel
egraph instrument. The prisoners were
taken to the Charles street station.
The place raided was a big room. 80 by
100 feet, In the rear OF what purported to
be a cigar store One OF the men ar
rested in the raid recently obtained an in
junction from Brooklyn Supreme Court
Justice restraining the police from inter-
fering with the business OF the store, al
leging that IL was doing legitimate bust
ness. II anyone had asked for whole
box Of cigars the clerk would have been at
his wits end
Shelf after shelf was filed with what ap-
peared to be boxes OF cigars In reality
they were dummy boxes. Besides there
was row after row Of fake cigar boxes
made Of pasteboard with cigar box labels
pasted on the outside. There were also a
few boxes Of cheap cigarettes.
The gambling and pool room was sep
arated from the store by two partitions
three or four feet apart Each partition
was more than four inches thick, with
two-inch filing OF sand.
Near the door in the first partition sat
the cashier Of the store at deek. Tho
door was built like q refrigerator door and
was several inches thick. The desk was
wonderfully gotten up affair. On the
top were two electric push buttons work.
ing buzzers, ono In tho foyer between the
two partitions and the other In the pool
room proper. What appeared to be q
drawer In the desk was really secret panel
which. let down. exposed a series Of push
buttons. They worked red and white lights
as signals to the guards on both doors.
A stranger, II he looked all right, might,
after the signal mad been given, get past
the first guard. Before he could get by
the other he had to undergo q rigid
examination,
On the south side OF the big inner room
was the double ender' roulette table.
It Is one Of the finest that has been captured
In many q day.
The rear Of the room was divided by
low partition. Behind 1t stood the men
who looked after the poolroom interests
Over the cashiers window was q sign
bearing this announcement:
Not responsible for weights or Jockeys
The north side OF the room was fitted
with tables and chairs for the patrons.
The south wall held the racing sheets. The
only entrance to the place. so far as the
either through the cigar store or a big
skylight directly over the middle OF the
room.
Inspector Hogan has'been on his vacation
for a few weeks, and Inspector Max Schmttt-
berger Is looking after Hogan's district;
the raid made yesterday, and II was carried
on without hitch by Roundsman Frank
Gallagher and dozen men taken from
tho stan Of both inspectors.
innocent enough to get into any place.
was admitted to the poolroom over two
weeks ago. He has been going there every
day since and has made money while getting
his evidence. Yesterday morning, armed
with an excellent diagram Of the place, he
Market police court, and got warrants for
nine men.
just before 4 o'clock in the afternoon
the bakers dozen Of policemen surrounded
the place M hehea Ess ,ss sSa Me ssas
armed with a sledgehammer and q rope,
climbed out on an adjoining window and
got on the roof. The others crowded into
the cigar store. They made no attempt to
break through the partition That would
When Mugge had fastened the rope under
his arms Minogue smashed the skylight
with the hammer. The glass fell down IN .
shower on the 200 men In the place. Then
Mugge was lowered by his companions.
e as and he %ss 90 bady 10 had
to 60 to St. Vinoent's Hospital later and
have the wound dressed.
At the first indication Of the raid all tho
men in the place hustled for the front door
and had been waiting for the raid, in the
lead. The detective got through the inner
door and then encountered the guard.
.The cops are outside-you can't get out
this way!" shouted the guard.
I'm one myself shouted Rehfeld, LIST
The crowd pressed after Rehfeld. He
had tucked his revolver in the sleeve Of
his coat. When he drew 1t the crowd fell
back. Then he opened the door and let
the other policemen in. Some Of the de-
tectivee belonged to Schmittberger's staff.
They didn't know Rehfeld. When they
saw him with a revolver in his hand they
piled into him and two Of them got him
by the throat. The situation was ex-
planned before he was much hurt.
The police rounded up all the men in the
place and picked out the men for whom
they had warrants. They could only
find five Of tho nine. Then Minogue did
little exploring. He found trap door
in the floor behind the partition in,the pool
room department. The door led to four
separate passages. Two ran to Broadway
and two to Mercer street. Three men
tried to get out that way, but Minogue
called for help and all were nabbed.
With the exception Of the eight for whom
the warrants had been issued, the men
were allowed to 60 after giving their names
and addresses. The prisoners said that
they were Henry Brown Of 2o6s Second
avenue, George Miller. 220 East Thirteenth
street; Andrew MILAN, sS4 Hudson street;
David Lewis, los West Ninety eighth street;
Albert Roberts, 81 Avenue A; John 8. Kah-
Ter, rs West Ninety-arst street, and Thomas