Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1909-03-24

equipped for the rough work which II
often became necessary for him to do
He had more than a fighters body
He had the mind Of a student. In
the hundreds of cases which he han.
died he had use more frequently fol
his trained brain than for his ready
hands.
Joseph gPetrosino was born In 1880
in tn" province of Salerno, in Italy,
He came to the United States when
he was a boy Of fifteen years and
started his New York career by sell.
Ing daswsnapers at Broome street and
the fBowery. He was graduated az
a newsboy and became an employee
Of the Gallo brothers, who then held q
city contract as scOw trimmers.
Through this channel he sdrifted into
the street cleaning squad. In those
days the street cleaning was done un-
der the jurisdiction of the police de-
partment, and so 1t came about that
the young Italian came under the
eagle eye Of Inspector Alexander VIII
Hams, the original GEAR Of the Ten.
derloin" and the right arm of Inspect
or Thomas Byrnes. Inspector vii.
liams lifted Petrosino out of the street
cleaning squad and on Oct. 9, 1888,
made him a member Of the uniformed
police force. He served in uniform
until he became regular member OF
the central detective bureau, in 1895,
where he scored his most notable
achievements.
It is difficult to select from the long
list Of cases Petrosino has handled
those best showing his methods and
instancing his success. The Brogno
murder. at Baxter and Leonard streets,
New York, in July. 1893, will perhaps
serve as good example. Natalo
Brogno was found, unconscious, suffer
Ing from a stab wound in the back.
Over him stood Angelo Carboni, who
was in the act Of kicking Brogno when
the police arrived 1t was learned that
Brogno, Carboni and a man named
Ceramello had quarreled in a saloon
on Leonard street while before, but
Carboni was apparently the murderer.
Indeed. the police. at his trial, testf-
ned that Brogno had identified him as
his assailant, and Carboni was con-
svicted and sentenced to death.
Petrosino was not satisfied. and this
fs what he did, related in his own
words:
After the convtction-I hadn't had much
In do with the caSo-I 80
OF boy and Waterman who had seen
the fight. Some friends told rue these two
had admitted this. Their story was that
Brogno had quarreled first with Cera-
mello, who was Carbonis father-in-law,
but that Brogno first came to blows with
Carboni. Brogno knocked Carboni down.
A. Brogno bent forward from the force
OF the blow Ceramello stole up behind
him and stabbed him in the back. Cera-
mello then ran away. Carboni didn't see
the stabbfng, but got UP as Brogno fell
and was kicking him when the police
came.
~ couldn't get these witnesses to repeat
their story. SO I went to the district at
torney, who said I'd better go into the
case thoroughly. SO started out to get
Ceramello. / got trace of him in Jersey
City, but he got away ahead of me. I
followed him to Philadelphia, then to
Mnlerton. In Delaware, every time Just
too late. Next 1 heard he was in Mont
real, SO to Canada I went. In Montreal
i heard Ceramello had gone u Nova
Scotia. missed ham there too, and fol-
lowed his trail back to New York. There
Lost all trace Of him. .. ssst5s55.
One day. nearly a month after I first
went after Ceramello. was standing 1t
Elizabeth and Mott streets when saw
his cousin. He knew me, but he didn't
zee me 80 !! trailed him up to Cortland
avenue, in the Bronx. I saw the cousin
30 into house. and watched outside
Until O'clock in the morning: then
made up my mind that he had gone to
Ded. ana went to . plaos near by and