The Washington times., 1915-02-23
HARLEM GAMBLER /
ACCUSED BECKER
Jack Rose Is Said to Have Ne:
gotiated for Hire Of 0unmen
for Murder.

NEW YORK. Feb. 2s.-The facts about
tho alleged affidavit In the Becker case,
the one that caused such a str on Sun
day because It was reported to contain
the charge that Charles Becker per-
sonally had besought Harlem gunman
to Kill Herman Rosenthal, became
known today.
The report has a substantial founda-
ton, but there Is no affidavit The basis
for the story lies IN the transcript Of
an oral statement that was made to
Charles s. Whitman, as District Attor-
ney. shortly after Rosenthal was killed.
Furthermore. the author Of the state
ment is not and was not a gunman. He
was q gambler whose rooms were IN
Harlem in the days before the Becker
The statement when made was un.
supported by anything but the word OF
Jack Rose. 1t was the baldheadcd
satsts Of the strong arm to ebe stten
ton of District Attorney Whitman ana
it was on Roses persuasion that he
told his story.
Refused To Swear.
However, when the trial Of Becker
was about to be called. the gambler
refused to swear to hts story on the
stand. He then was in an invalid cons
dition that would have made him more
or less hopeless as witness. so the
district attorney abandoned all inten-
tion OF calling him.
incidentally, when Jack Rose told his
remarkable story to the jury ne omit
ted the episode in which Becker. the
gambler and he are supposed TO nave
participated. Nor does any mention o. o,
the alleged request of Becker occur IN
the written confession that Rose made
public before he became witness
asrre There are in thes office of the district
statements that were made by gam
blers and others at the time the mlr.
der was being Investigated. Har9y
prominent gambler or gang !eaosr
Of the. district attorney or the grand
jury. In all there were more than
hundred persons questioned who never
were called as witnesses.
Mental and Physical Wreck.
Should Becker get new trial there
will be no opportunity for the district
attorney to make use OF the statement
and it is hardly likely that the man
who made the statement will hgure'
az he 10 mentally and physically in
capacitated now.
Here are the facts that have been
learned about the gamblers statement:
Rose told the district attorney that
Becker, after his feud with Rosenthai,
had sent him-Rose-to Harlem to see
this gambler. His mission. as Rose told
at the time, was to have this gambler
hire gunmen to destroy Rosenthal.
The gambler. fearing that Becker was
framing him, up" to get him IN MS ms
for anything. He demanded that such
a message come from Becker PERSONAL
ly Rose said that he made an appoint
ment for Becker and the gambler. ana
they met in a saloon on upper seventh
avenue. There. according to Roses
story. Becker told the gambler that
as his word.
Finally Quit In Disgust.
Rose, however, in hopes that Becker
and Rosenthal would patch up their
quarrel, told the gambler time after
time to delay hiring the gunmen. Final
ly the Harlem man became disguised
and quit the plan.
After Lefty Louie" and his three
companions had killed Rosenthal. the
gambler, fearing that in some way he
would become involved. left town. He
was found in Bridgeport and there
made a short statement that confirmed
in part the story told by. Rose. He is
fully In later talks with the district at
torney.
The fact that the report Of this state
nent appeared coincidentally with
Governor Whitman's visit to town on
Sunday caused much comment yester-
day. but the story was not given out
by him. 1t gained currency from some
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