New-York tribune., 1907-02-25
BLACK HAND RECORD.
Police Unable to Break Up Secret
Organization.

The number Of crimes attributed 10 the Black
Hand society, or agencies closely allied with it,
. has grown 10 such an extent in the last few
years that the Police Department found II nee
essary TO assign special men to the task Of fer
reting out the nests Of the organization. but up
TO the present day the task has seemed too hard
for the men Of the detective bureau. They have
yet TO find the men behind the threatening let
ters-the men who think out in daylight the
deeds committed by their tools at night. Detec-
tive Petrosino. himself an Italian, familiar with
fheSexterior workings Of the organization, has
done much TO curb the advance Of this branch
Of blacknail, but has yet TO run TO earth the
brains OF the organization. In the more serious
cases, such as murders and fires, there have been
no convictions. There have been several minor
convictions. but the police have yet to arrest
snd convict a bona fide member Of the organiza-
ton.
Tie local detective bureau found it impossible
to handle the situation for a time in 1905, and
asked the assistance Of the federal Secret Ser
vice men. In that year there we're thirty-four
cases Of police record-two deliberate murders,
the remainder being bomb throwing attempts to
burn houses and petty forms of blackmailing
The most notable incidents Of this year were
the murder Of an italian butcher in Brooklyn
the wrecking Of seven story tenement house
at Grand and Mott streets, and the receipt Of
letters by D. B. Wesson, the revolver manu-
1acturer Of Springfield. Mass, threatening TO
hlow I'd his home.
There were almost as many cases last year.
II IS known definitely now that the Black Hand
does not consist OF one large organization, but
OF many small ones Of perhaps fifteen or twenty
members each. with signals and codes known to
all The following table shows the moro I'm
poFtant Black Hand cases IN the last two years
here and elsewhere:
:d a dsssa foT ausns sss'P Rss sfF BY olS S
BiGeE ssno letters % her father and others .
police that be had received Black Hand letters from
osqssT i.esssaa eoss an Issa sut2hsE e r. a: No ss0
eeived shresfeninE ietters 0' -
octO6er 5OAa United States Service Bureau
OOsoSer 2Tea persons injured By explosion Of bomb in
November s-George Bentley Grard confesses IN Bos-
Hand letters sert 10 residents os Long Island
November lid. B. Wesson. Of Springfield Mass,
EOvember i2Iod AUDUBON House. Broadway and 1925
DsO:6sF i7.5Gs.RS MoEGTs!G sac 6y p9liGs to b
No I7ss catherine street
1906
May zJuror IN trial of JOsepains Tsrranova receives
August ~Attore Rioco arrested on charg. Of blacal
heid IN $1,000: afeFward released for lack of evi-
AHEIst l4.Sew ork Italian hed IN $1,000 san in Bal
UnoFe charged with attempted blackmail of Italian
Of that city
August 20-NaFIus Angelo. italian contractor held
and robbed OF 500 IN lonely section between Port
Chester and White Plains.
November 4-gomb explosion skaters tenement house
No. $50 BushHick avenue. Williamsburg: Italian
tenant had received threatening letters two arrests
IN
December 12-Frank Massa In hotel Ray
zTth and Har8ay avenue Brooklyn
December is-Tenement house no. 5O2 First avenue
occupied By Italian families. shaken by dynamite
bomb; hurt.
eosber 8O-Bomb explodes OF Eve story tene-
nneut house at No. 25f Elizabeth street; said u
have been INTENDED for Frank Bareale Italian