The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1909-05-07
THE FAMOUS Sc
CRET SOCIETIES.
The "Mafia," "Black Hand"
"Commorra" and Other
Organization.

Inc aSSinhuOn OF a femouS Annenl-
can detective by en agent OF the BLACK
Hand seSet society, whose crimes
he was investigating. draws atten-
ton to the large number of Secret
societies which stin flourish at the
present day.
Since january 1, 1908, the crimes at
tributed to the "Black Hand" COM
mitted in the city of New York aver
eyed more than one day. Lest year
there were 46S cases of murder and
bomb Throwing reported, and only
As convictions secured out Of 2S5 ar
rests.
When a new member is admitted to
the BLACK Hand society he first
of all smears a small figure of his
own favo.ite saint with his own blood
The figure is afterwsqd set on fire,
and while it is burning the candidate
repeets the cath Of tire association as
follows:
81 swear on my honor to be fsfth-
fur to the brotherhood. As this saint
and drops of my blood are destroyed,
SO will l Shed ell my blood for the
fraternity; and as these ashes and
this blood can never be restored, so
( can never Become free from the
brotherhood"
Then the initiate hes to drew Q re-
volver and shoot at cTuoifix TO
show that he would be willing ct any
time to kill his nearest relation or
most intimate friend if commanded
10 do so.
He is then full member, and is
said 10 be a wearer Of the 'Ted
mantle" His meme rs a member is
not entered in any books, but is du-
ly forwarded to the headquarters and
then it is communicated by word Of
mouth to all the other members of the
district where he lives.
The Commor1a Of Naples are much
like the Main. Those who join have
to swear a terrible oath of secrecy,
and even so it is not until they have
been tried and found true that they
are accepted for full membership.
The rev member is given two deg
gers On the hilt CT eaoh is craven
the mystic sign Of the organization.
This sign is, however, changed from
time to time. The CommorIa have
a strange form of greeting.
When the Commoirist believe any
one he meets to be member he grips
him by the threat with his left hand
and with tine right dIewss his knife from
his sheath. The other If a member
at once gives the password, and Shows
both his knives, after which the pair
empty the contents of their pockets
in heap, and share and share alike.
Amongst the most notorious crimf-
nal societies of the present dsy, evil
dence of whose grewsome activity ap-
pears in the papers at frequent inter
walls. are the Boxers in China, the
Hatchet Boys in California, the
Apaches in Paris, the Hip Sings in
Sam Francisco and Les FreIes &c Ia
Cote sll over France.
Most of the Chinese secret socie-
ties, although their objects are. es
blood1hirsty as any other, have more
peaceful passwords and signs and they
are generally associated with ice ma
tional pastime of drinking tea.
Thus tire Hip Sings Of SIN Fam
cisco, when drinking tee in a Chinese
restaurant, communicate with unknown
members by tleway they hanCLe their
cups, (which they place in a certain
manner, ard by giving peculiar di-
rection to tire spout Of the teapot.
The Hensohskists, an American Sc
cret society, which has te-Co-ized the
Armen,em communities in al the big
cities throughout the world, tes he'd
it's headquag ters established in Len
don for many Yeas FIRST at Shep-
heqI's BUSH and now at Pecknam.-An
swers.