The New York herald., 1922-08-28
LITTLE GOPHER GANG
Is TOOL IN THEFTS
Larger Boys and Some Men
Reap Results Of R0bberies
and Holdups.
INITIATE ORIGINAL CROWD
Buster Bird, IA, Leader of
Embryonic Gunmen, Still
Hunted After Escape.
INITIATE ORIGINAL CROWD

| Despite the occasional alarms from
Eleventh avenue warning citizens thai
| the Gophers, the Hudson busters and
the Hooker gang are at 1t again with
guns, blackjacks and bricks. the fact
remains that these occasional uprisings
of what used to be steady warfare
are all that remain of those famous
West Side gangs
| Now and then a few tough boys will
! indulge in a bit OF looting and gun play
| in the vicinity of Tenth avenue and
Twenty seventh street and the public Is
| informed that the Hookers are hooking
| again. AS a matter of fact the Hooker
gang ceased to exist ten years ago and
its surviving members Joined either the
| O'Brien or the Sullivan faction of the
already disntegrating Gopher gang.
| The Gophers became dull and flabby
when their great chief, Owney Madden,
went to Sing Sing. But still one hears
| Of occasional outbursts of this same
Gopher outfit, no longer divided into fac
| tions but struggling along in a half
hearted attempt to preserve its identity.
All that remains of the Gopher gang is
numerically much smaller than either
the sullivan or O'Brien factions were
| ten years ago.
Hudson busters Gone Too.
1t is pretty much the same with the
Hudson busters who, after ALL were
| never the we'll organized aggregation
that the Gophers were. They were some
| what nomadic and inclined to frequent
dispersions Police Commissioner Woods
| started the strong arm program that
discouraged the Gophers and the Dust
ers. Police Commissioner Enright fol-
lowed and the result is that all that re-
mains of the Hoolers. the busters and
| the Gophers are legends aud occasional
emula tions Of their former heroes.
These legends and this hero worship
are responsible for the existence In
Eleventh avenue and its environs to-day
of fluctuating band OF youngsters that
the police call the Little Gophers. Last
week one Michael Bird known as Buster
\ Bird. was arrested at Tenth avenue and
Fifty-second street by a detective who,
the moment he grabbed the Buster was
set upon by a dozen or so lads whose
ages ranged from IL TO 16 years.
/ The Buster, who Is only IA but over
grown and entirely too sophisticated. was
wanted for burglary and for escaping
from the Catholic Protectory, whence
he had been sentenced for three years
for helping his undisciplined self to prop
erty that was not his. The detective
managed to fight free of the Busters
would be rescuers. but he had to draw
/ his revolver to do II. The Buster was
lodged in the detention room of the Chill
dren's Society for the night and the very
first thing he did after supper was to
Jimmy and pick lock his way to free
| dom.
And the Buster. IA years old, is a
fugitive from justice.
Shine by Reflected Light.
Those boys who sought to wrench the
Buster free from the detective were, as
he is. Little Gophers. They are yet too
immature to he classed with murderous
| gunmen. They haven't taken to fighting
each other In the streets yet They are
not quite up TO cop fighting. There Is
no definite organization to hold them
together. They are mere brats OF the
streets glorying In the storied prowess
Of their older brothers (and sometimes
their fathers and uncles) in the days
when the Gopbers. the Busters and the
Hookers were organizations that even
the police feared
However, one must not get the idea
that they are as futile as they are young.
just how mean these Little Gophers are
may be understood when the police re-
port that 1t Is almost impossible to get
those tenement dwellers living between
Tenth and Eleventh avenues and on both
thoroughfares to give information against
these youngsters because they fear GER
\ tain reprisals.
AT least hundred burglaries. the ma
jority of them small ones are charged
TO the Little Gophers. Scores OF hold
ups OF boys and girls carrying home
their weekly wages have occurred within
the last year and in almost every case
the police have learned that the bandits
rave been mere youngsters OF Ia or so.
In most OF the holdups the victims were
not older than Is or 16.
The burglaries have been Of minor
character for the most part Clothing
has been stolen and later found in
pawnshops. Now and then clocks or
house ornaments have been taken by
these neophyte burglars. But some
times real raids are made on ware
houses and on dozen occasions these
voluntary Artful Dodgers have ransacked
apartments as thoroughly as any old
timers hould have.
Gnng Nfcknnmes Handed Down.
And true to boy nature there has been
a great revival OF famous gang names
All the past heroes OF gangdom have
been honored by having their nick-
names adopted by the kids VINO think IL
Is marvellous thing TO emulate them.
For example, the police have heard of
such characters az Kid Dropper, Young
Mailer, Young Paul Kelly (no relation 10
Paul VaccarellD. Kid Mike. Bolter the
Little Parson, Kid Killer, The Blowser
Foxy Wolf, The Little Won, Young Duh
lin, and Freckles McSorley. All of these
names are taken from the list of gang
names made famous perore many of the
Little Gophers were born.
From police headquarters orders have
gone out calling for the clearing from
all the favorite gang corners and other
places favored as gathering points. all
youngsters who have no business these
And that means that the Little Gophers
are struggling for notoriety against what
Is tantamount to a curfew law While
the uniformed patrolmen keep the Little
Gophers scattered the electives who arc
out to capture their leaders are cultivat.
Ing the youth Of Tenth and Eleventh
avenues.
Buster Bird Is credited with being q
Little Gopher but the police say that he
had been coached and urged on by older
boys and even grown men who cannot
operate In the old way themselves anc
have taken TO exploiting the Little
Gophers. In other words the Littl,
Gophers do the actual robbing and tn,
| oldpr nnpg dfSpoap OF the stuff and nro