Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-06-28
''HOLY DOCTOR"
LAID HANDS ON
CASH, NOT HEAD
His Stock in Trade Were a Saucer
Of Sweet on and Vinegar,
And a Cruxifx.

New York.-A saucer of sweet
oil and vinegar, a cruciffx, and a
reputation for having the powers
of God and deVlP'-these were the
stock in trade of the "holy doctor, "
Joseph Bafbera, who was recently
found guilty of grand larceny in
the Bronx county court.
1t took the jury exactly two min
utes and a half to decide the holy
doctors" claims were a nisrepre-
sentation of the facts, that he was
not gifted by God with healing
powers and that when he took
money from the poor on that pre-
tense he was stealing.
The case attracted considerable
attention from the fact that the
attorney for the defense endeavor-
ed to bring into the discussion the
healing powers of James Moore
Hickson, the faith healer, who has
been practicing the laying on of
hands in Trinity chapel.
Divine Power Plus Cash.
THE divine power o. healing has
been well known from time i'm
memorial" he said, "and from the
days of the II apostles down to Mr..
Hickson-"
You show me the proof that the
apostles or Mr. HickSon, either,
ever demanded $3.50 in advanced"
cried Assistant District Attorney
Seymour Mork, who was prescott
ing the case. The defense changed
the line of argument.
The holy doctor" was known to
some of his patients as captain, :"
claiming to have been an officer in
the Italian army. He made no
claims to medical knowledge.
The chief witness against him
was Frank Morasco, an old man,
who, when he took the stand, was
shaking with palsy.
I was an iceman, but now / live
with my brother and he gives me So
a week TO buy food" he testified.
This doctor told me he could cure
me in 36 months so that l could
work again. l had a few hundred
dollars. No sir, it was not in the
bank; my brother carried it for
me-pinned in his pocket L had
saved this money to take me back
to Italy to die. Captain Barbera
said it would cost $3.50 to cure me.
Police Take Up His Trail
After nine months of his treat
ment I was worse than I had ever
been, and my money was all gone"
1t was MoTascO who was re-
sponsible for Barbera's predica-
ment He told his troubles to the
police and they took up the trail of
the holy doctor" 1t led through
the most pitiful homes of the Ital-
ian section of the Bronx, where
sufferers from incurable ailments
had been told they could be cured
by Captain Barbera and were en-
deavoring to collect large sums of
money for prepayment of the cure.
1t was testified that he had OBJ
Tined almost $4,000 since he be
gan "practieing" two years ago.
Mrs. Teresa Scozzari told of sit
ting up at night to work on en-
broidery, which she sold and hand
ed over the money to Captain Bar
bera, bit by bit. She worked all
day for her sister, keeping house
and it was only by most painful toll
that she collected $3.50 for the doc
tor" She suffered from inter
mittent pains in the back. She
testified that they disappeared when
the doctor first treated her, but
returned Immediately after.
The cure" consisted of rubbing
the patient with holy OIL and
making the sign of the crucifix on
the forehead. There was on elab-
crate ceremonial.
Prayer, Oil-Then Cash.
"He spread a clean, white cloth
over a table and then poured out
some oil into a. saucer" testified
the policeman who arrested him
after watching from behind a cur
tain.
His practice in these cases was
to hand his victim a holy crucifix
and then bury his own forehead in
his hands as if in deep thought.
Suddenly he would look heaven
ward and imploro the Almighty to
have pity on his client. Then he
would rub the afflicted person with |
the oil, and, stopping in the middle
of the process, announced that now
was the time for the money"