Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-09-23
SICIL IAN SLAIN BY DAGGER
NINETEEN THRUSTS IN MUTT
LATED BODY.
Went to His Shop Before Sunrise on
Sunday and There Met the
Murderer.

NEW YORK, September 23.-In Little
| Italy, in his tailor shop at $50 East 1O1th
| street. Epifanio Argona, Siclian, was
! found yesterday dead, hacked and mutt
lated. There were nineteen stab wounds in
| his body.
The police spent all day trying to find a
woman who had worked forewoman in
| Argonas shop. They learned that her first
name is Vita, that she was married a
month ago and that her new husband had
| reason to bear malice toward Argona. The
employees of the place all talked a great
| deal about Vita and how she was favored
| by Argona. None could tell where she
| the station house of his own accord and
| told lot of things about Vita and Argona.
| He knew where the woman lived, so he told
| the police; knew her husband and could
! take the police right to the pair.
| Detectives started out with him and they
! had got about four blocks away from the
| station when great change came over
| Francesca. He seemed to have been stricken
| dumb. He didn't know anything. He
| didn't even understand English, although
| he had talked in tn - language with glib
| tongue at the station house. The police
| tried to coax him out of his trance, but 1t
was of no avail. They We're satisfied that
he had seen some one on the street and had
got 4 warning to keep his mouth shut
| w ncn they were convinced tflal l0ele was
no use in trying to get him to do anything
for them they locked him up as suspicious
person.
Francesca Left Over.
1--WE don't want him to go around and
spoil the case" explained Capt. Corcoran.
Argona was married. He has three chill
dren by his first wife, Josefina, who died
about ten months ago. Shortly after her
death Argona went over to Palermo, Sicily,
and married her sister. Marietta, who has
since been keeping house for him. Ar
gonas father and his brother Tony lived
with the family. whose home is on the
fourth floor of the tenement at $40 East
1OSth street
Argona had good business and employed
twenty-five or thirty persons. He manu-
ia ctured shOddy skirts. 1t was his custom
to go around to the shop on Sunday morn
ing and sort out the work for Monday.
Yesterday he left his home at 5 o'clock.
His shop is one flight up and is a large
room with the windows in both front and
rear heavily barred.
Shortly after o'clock Renda Stanisau.
a presser employed in the place, went to
the shop to finish few pieces he had not
finished Saturday. He knew that Argona
would be there. Stanislau was surprised
arriving at the front of the shop to find
the front door swinging open. Always be-
fore on Sunday the door had been locked
AM he had had to beat on it to bring
down the boss.
Stanislau Finds Body.
Stanislau went upstairs and pushed in
the shop door, on which were red bloches.
Just to the right from the door the body
of Argona lay on the floor. The clothes
had been almost entirely torn off and the
body had bled from many wounds.
The presser ran downstairs into the arms
of Policeman Baumbach. 1t wasn't very
long before Detective Devoti of Lieut.
Petrosino's staff arrived from police head
quarters with staff of assistants. He
had photographs taken of bloody finger
prints on the street door. There was one
plain fngermark on the outside of the
door. 1t Is that of third finger. quite
large and undoubtedly that of a man.
There were blood marke on the inside Of
the door and it is surmised that the muir
derer had to grope his way out Of the place
in the dim dawn and therefore that the
murder was done soon after Argona first
went to the shop. The ambulance surgeon
had been dead at least an hour. The muir
derer took part of the mutilated body
away.
Coroner's Physician Leblanc found that
the killing had been done with a double
edged knife. The heart had been pene-
trated several times and the left lung was
pierced so often and so deeply that 1t had
collapsed entirely. There was. one deep
Rounding Up Employees.
The police began to round up the en-
ployes of Argona. All began to talk about
Vita, the forewoman. According to all of
them Vita had left Argona's employ a
month ago to get married. They were
much surprised last Monday to find her
back in her old job. She admitted that
she had been married, but said to the other
employees that she wanted to earn some
money. Argona paid her So week. Most
of the other women got about 50, SO the
employees said.
The man Francesca told the police that
his salary was reduced by reason of the
extra expense to Argona of getting Vita
back. Out of the batch of employees
rounded up the police got hold of Pedro
Castagne, the bookkeeper, in the hope that
he might be able to tell where Vita lived.
Castagne had book with the names of
Argona's employees listed-that is, the first
names only and no addresses. He was not
detained. Stanislau was held a witness
The family of Argona could throw no
light on the murder. They couldn't think
of any one that would want to kill the
tailor. He had never received any threat
ening letters, so his people said and carried