New-York tribune., 1912-02-08
AFTER HORSE PRISONERS
Whitman Starts Inquiry Into
Wholesale Crimes.
SUBPGNAS FOR MERCHANTS
Thousands Paid in Blackmail-
Victims Fear to Inform on
East Side Gang.

The District Attorney has taken up the
mystery Of the wholesale horse poison
ing in this CITY, with its attendai"
crimes of extortion. blackmail Nandai-
ism, stealing, boycotting. assaults, ana
even murder. More than 1000 horses
are killed annually by the horse poison
ers and over S1,OOOOO0 damage is done
annually to property by the gang
Assistant District Attorneys Bleler
and Moskowitz have been assigned to
conduct the investigation and yesterday
subpnnas were issued for about half
dozen East Side merchants and one labor
leader. some of whom have knowledge
of the crimes of the horse poisoners
Nearly all those subpPnaed have SUI
fered loss at the hands of the gang; their
horses poisoned or stolen, their places
Of business wrecked and their lives
threatened
One of them Samuel Liebowitz. presi-
dent OF the Mineral Water Workers
Union. declares that a price of $500 l.
set upon mis- head. He has been sub
poenaed
Others subpmnacd are Joseph Gurol-
nick and Benjamin Rabinovich. seltzcr
water manufacturers, Of No. 100 LUDLOW
street: Louis Artchich, also mineral
water manufacturer. Of No. 10 Sheriff
street; David Kaplan. an employe CT
C;momick and Rabinovich: Barney Sin
ger a contractor. Of No. :}O1 East lp'h
street: NJ. Borenstein. president Of a syna-
Eogue and a maker Of mineral water at
Houston and Allen streets, and NJ. Pari-
ser, Of No. 400 East Houston street,
Curolnick and Rabinovich have had
their horses poisoned and their rigs
stolen by the gang, after receiving
threats from business rival. it is al-
legged. 4 horse Of one of their customers,
Lassner & Sternberg, Of Avenue d ana
I'd street. was poisoned as il stood IN
front of their place of business.
But of all those under subpoena. Bar
rev Singer suffered most. He was in
business as q maker Of mineral water mp
TO last July. when some allies of the horse
poisoning gang broke into his factory,
wrecked the machinery and poisoned the
water. The horse prisoners next killed
two Of his horses, and the day following
stole his remaining horse and wagon,
putting him out of business entirely.
No calling requiring the use of horses
on the Sast Side or in any other Jewish
settlement in the city is free from the
gang. They are sometimes employed Wy
business rivals, but of late they have
been conducting a guerilla warfare on
their own account.
Livery stablemen are the largest vic
Tins Many of them pay monthly trib-
ute. Others are blackmailcd periodic
ally. These latter pay from 500 to $1,000
AT a time according to Superintendent
Thomas r Freel OF the American So
ciety for the Prevention Of Cruelty -
Animals.
We know the victims" said Supcrin-
tcndent Frcel I'VE give them marked
money when We learn they have received
bIackmailinC letters, but in nearly every
instance they refuse 10 enter into a plan
TO trap tho eXtortioners.'
The same obstacles are met with by
Captain Harry P. Foy, of the branch de-
tcctive bureau AT Delaney and Clinton
streets
We arc out on several Of these cases
now" said Captain Foy, yesterday.
only to-day we went 10 a livery stable
man and talked TO him. That man said
TO me and to two of my men, Detectives
Isnders and De Cantillon: If those fell
lows ever tried TO blackmail me I'd fix
them
Nov. we knew that that man was
lying. We knew that he not only had
been threatened. but that he had paid
blackmail. But we can't afford to tel
him we know. That's the sort of thing
we're up against here. The people arc
afraid"
There have been many arrests 10y the
police aud two men arrested a few
months ago by Captain Foy's men are
doing terms of five years
Captain Foy and Detectives De Can
tilIon and Landers at present are trying
10 run down the murderers of Louis
Bmmenthal who was shot some days
ago after he had refused to leave the
state so that he would not be witness
in n horse poisoning case.
-A-