The sun., 1909-12-29
IT ALL BEGAN WITH BOW KUN
MURDER FOR MURDER FOE-
LOWS CHINESE GIRLS DEATH.
ppaootInIf OF Two Ancient Laundrymen In
PeH street One OF q series 0r ne
prisaIs OF which No lind Is visible
900 I'm Chinatown shrink to 900.

All the trouble between the On Leong |
Tong and the Four Brothers, the latter
a Chinese -fraternal" society, which re-
suited in the shooting Of two old men.
Low Jung and Low Ye Fong. at 301S Pell
street the night before last. seems to have
begun with the murder Of the young Chi
u.se girl. Bow Kun. last summer. Until
that murder and for a short time after
ward most of the -Four Brothers were
members Of the On I,eongs.
Her death and subsequent differences
of opinion between the Chinese criminals
led up to the murder of two On Leongs
on October last by men belonging to the
-Four Brothers. This shooting. it seemed.
furthermore resulted in the instant killing
of Low Jung late on Monday night and the
death about noon yesterday OF Low Ye
Fong in the Hudson street hospital.
In the windows Of the Chinatown shops
the stroller may see little ornaments like
paper weights made up Of three little
monkeys Of metal all cast in one group.
One Of the monkeys is so designed that it
is covering its mouth with its hands. the
next one is covering it's eyes and the third
is holding its ears-telling nothing. seeing
nothing and hearing nothing. The little
groups typify Chinatown. especially
where ahootipgs and tong wars are con-
Cerned.
But there were found in Chinatown last
night those who know something OF the
district and its tongs and who were not
afraid to tell what they knew. They told
how the Chinese girl Bow Gum once was
the wife of a San Francisco Chinaman
who was a member of the Four Brothers.
One day little Bow Gum met a member
OF the On Leong long and liked him.
Together thay rau away to New York.
The deserted member OF. the Four
Brothers in San Francisco learned afte,
a time where his former wife was living
and with whom. On a Saturday night last
July the girl was found murdered on the
fourth floor Of a house in Mott street.
Nobody could be found who had seen the
murder. or knew anything Of it.
Put within ten days a group OF On
Leongs stepped forward and offered
their services as witnesses against
two members OF the Four Brothers
who were being held by the police.
Straightway the Four Brothers went to
these On Leongs and pleaded with them
not TO testify. for az that time most Of the
-Four Brothers were affiliated with the On
Leongs. The On Ieongs agreed not 10
testify. but for a consideration. They
wanted - 900 from the Four Brothers
treasury before they would agree TO for
get what testimony they were supposed
TO be able to supply.
That price was too much for the Four
Brothers. and they fiatiy said so. One
day shortly after the Four Brothers had
announced TO the On Leongs that they
couldn't afford TO pay the 5000 a notice
was posted in the loss house at 10 Mott
street. Incoming Chinese worshippers
gathered about the long strip OF red paper
and learned that the notice was an order
by the tong TO the effect that all On Leongs
who we're members of the Four Brothers
must Isave the OnLeong Tong at once.
The -Four Brothers crowd promptly re-
signed from the tong. The On Leongs
and the Hip Sing Tongs, IL must be under
stood, are kind OF Masonic organization.
whereas the Four Brothers 10 fraternal
society made up of members OF the clans
of Low, Quon. Jung and Chu. all coming
from a town made up OF four villages in
the Province Of Canton. Almost all OF
the Four Brothers promptly joined the
Hip SINGS when fired from the On Leongs.
The Hip Sing Tong. which has been run
ming down sadly In this part OF the world.
needed and welcomed them.
Bickerfnrs followed between the On
Leongs and the Four Brothers. and
chickering's in Chinatown lead to moro
than mere words. As result the On
Leongs and the -Four Brothers declared
war One Chinaman educated in this
terday that a tong member said TO him
recently in City Hall Park can shoot
any ChinamAn ! want to and get away
with it."
With that feeling Of safety in mind
On ths On LeonFs on October and shot
them. The shooters had no personal Ill
will against these two particular On
Leongs. They shot them merely because
they were On Leongs. which 10 q way the
Both the wounded men were hurried TO
the Hudson street hospital, One OF the
wounded men, Lee Gong. had q bullet
wound in the back and was more seri-
ously injured then his friend. He was
has developed consumption and viii die.
But his friend Hong Chong soon began
90 sit UP and take notice over at the HUG
son street hospital. just q week ago ne
was discharged, cured. As ne was va. ie%evllng %li
Captain Mike Calvin, he stopped to talk
%ThereiI be shooting soon. think.
he said. There was. As Capt. Calvin put
"sf sfhe -Four Brothers got two OF the On
Leongs. Monday night the On Leongs
got two Of the Four Brothers. Now, OF
course. it's up TO the Four Brothers TO
get some more On Leongs. They'll get
them. I suppose. Maybe they won't do
1t right away. Maybe they'll wait till
things die down bit. But they'll get
even That's what a tong war rs and It's
When I came here 70. tho Elizabeth
street station ten months ago there were
about 1000 Cinnamon IN the precinct.
To-day there are less than 1000 In China.
town. For rent signs are scattered all
over the district.
And, by the way, maybe you don't
know Of the way the monkeys lthe slang
term along the Bowery for Chinamenl
hIackmail their landlords. When bosi-
ness gets bad they go TO their landlords
and tell them that when they move they
are going 20 put the 'blackbalP on the
-rore unless the landlord comes across
with a sum OF money-sometimes as high
ds $500. II the landlord refuses the
Chinaman goes TO his tong and passes
the word that no Chinaman must rent
the place until the blackmail is paid by
the landlord And so. after the store
has been vacant about as long a. the