The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-07-23

mouse ever had. In 10 minutes | could
clean up, put all the tools-the gam
ping paraphernalia-away so that ii
would take bomb explosion to dig
them up. We would make the clean
up, and when the police arrived they
would IND half a dozen men sitting
around.
"One time l saw copper in uni
| form standing across the street from
the club house on Second avenue.
went over to him and asked him
what he was doing there. He said
ne had been stationed there by the
| inspector to count the number of
men that came into my place. ask
ed MIN II he was all right, and he said
! ne was Then he was on the payroll
| for SIS day for as long as he was
Kept there by the inspector.
AT midnight a few days later
Jerome, with the police and crow bars.
sledge hammers and axes, made a raid
| on the Second avenue house. They
found nothing except half a dozen
men, Five Of them were clerks and
| the other was a player.
| They had no evidence of gambling.
| put was indicted for bribery on the
| grounds that I had corrupted tele
| phone operator in the district attor-
| ney's office by paying him SIS to tip
me off when the district attorneys
|
! spect my place. I never saw this tie
| phone operator, but one of my men
| had made the arrangement.
But when Lieut.. Becker made the
raid in the Second avenue place he be-
! came big man right away. He was
| in charge Of the gambling situation.
! The payment of protection money re-
Gently dates from that time.
First Meeting With Becker.
''The first time I met or saw Becker,
as l said, was at a ball on Thanksgiv
| ing eve. 1 used to run dances for the
! Hesper Club, which took hold of, and
the police were always declared in on
| them and got the better part Of the
| receipts. I had been raided at the
| Hesper Club, and that raid cost
Deputy Commissioner Driscoll his job
| in the police department. They
wanted to get Driseoll and everybody
| would listen to me then. had also
| taken the house at 104 West Forty
fifth street and had been raided and
put out of business. They had evil
dence in that raid, for a copper had
gotten inside and had played, and I
| had no kick coming. They didn't get
| ne and did not seem to want me-
| "Becker's first raid on Second ave-
! nue. had been on a house run by
| man named Sigmund Resented. who
was known as 'Beansey' and who had
as his Partner a man known as Jack
Rose. This fellow Rose had a fair
| education and was a little better
versed in the use of words than most
| of the boys on the East Side, and
| they looked up to him as a wise fell
| Iowa sort of MOUTH iece-and al
| though he never had much he worked
his way in. The result of Becker's raid
| on Beansey and Roses place was a
| sort Of partnership between Becker
and Rose.
Becker wanted to be made a big
man and Rose boosted him along. Rose
knew some of the newspaper boys, he
| said, and sure enough some stories
| were printed about Lieut.. Becker and
| his strong arm squad which made
| him big nan, and they gave him
absolute trol of the gambling
situation in lew York. And then the
places begsEso open UP and protec
''9 %rho he's se paid met af nIeat Becker
was New Years eve at the Elks Club.
We had a fine evening together and
had a lot of champagne to drink Late
in the morning we were all pretty
well under the weather from the
| effects of the champagne.
Said He Refused to Quit.
Since I first told publicly of my
/
sons have been to me and asked me
| to quit. I told them 1 was simply
lighting my own case and would in
volve nobody else
Becker was able to work as he
| wished because he was satisfied that
the newspapers were liked He be-
| lieved that this had been done by
Winnie Sheehan, the private secre-
tary to Commissioner Waldo, who was
| a hal -
| ed his appointment in the police de-
partment
| 'Sheehan often boosted of his pull
with the newspapers and of his friend
ship with men high in editorial posi-
| lions on the daily press. He frequent
~ mentioned their names as among
his friends and men who would do
anything for him and would suppress
| or print notes at his wish, He named
editors of The Work, ~of The Ameri-
can and other daily papers. l can't
remember all the names, but I know
| that he was constantly in company
| With the newspaper men and the fact
| that protection money was being
| given and nothing said about it con-
WINGED me that Sheehan was able to
make good and that the newspapers
| would print nothing.
I don't know how much money is
| being collected in town. but 1 do know
| Becker and know about his business.
/ learned all about his affairs during
| the time I was in partnership with
! him. From not having a nickle he has
| come to be worth more than $50, 900.
and his income has been between
! $500 and $4,000 a month
! Sheehan denied absolutely there was
| any truth in RosenthaTs statement
about him
|
THAW'S CASE IS