Evening star., 1928-12-12
BY GLEN LANE.

booze, vice and gambling chieftains, and
those charged with being allied with
them, received a setback when poll
ticians accused of protecting them went
down to defeat. But they are far from
being routed.
"Scarface Al" Capone, whose noto-
riety has gone the length and breadth
of Ahe land, still sits in lavish suite
in a Michigan Boulevard hotel, sur
rounded by his lieutenants.
big Joe" Salts continues to defy the
police and Federal officials to take him
into custody, although the former nave
been seeking him for six months ana
the latter nearly two.
Guns continue to pop in the gang war
that won Chicago i'll repute. But
there's light ahead. Judge Jonn a.
Swanson has been elected states at
torney on platform pledging nlm 70
end the lawlessness that mace Chlcago
a by-word. Efficient, honest men nave
been elected to the coroner'S post ana
the sherif's post, and William F. Rus
sell. appointed commissioner OF police
few months ago. is showing progress. :,
AS an indirect result of the April
urinary. Mayor Thompson appointed
Russell to head the police. Whether
Russell asked a free hand never became
public. He made no promises OF
cleanup, but a few weeks after taxing
Office he reinstated John Stege as
deputy commissioner and put him IN
charge of the detective division.
Underworld Fears Siege.
Siege. who was ousted on Thompson's
election on charges 26 years old, is
hated and feared by the underworld
probably more than any other police
executive. His reinstatement was her
aided as a blow against Ganglano:
Russell went quietly to work. Whole
sale transfers sent new men. many OF
them with outstanding records, INTO the
city's plague spots. Vice ana gamoiiils
went into discreet retirement.
when Russell took Office, handbooks
were almost as common as drug stores
and many of them were run quite as
onenlv. The racing sheets were posted
to the accompaniment OF ballyhooers
"Boys. get your bets down." or Seats
omen in the blackjack game~ Tne
rooms were crowded. the play" both
on the races and at the tables, was
good.
OF late weeks the bookmakers have
been receiving their clients In almost
f1Inereal quiet. Gone are the racing
sheets and the ballyhooers. No more
are there card games. Bets can be
made, but the customers are not en-
couraged to loiter--a condition which
has cut considerably into the BOOK
makers business.
other gambling spots, the ''ritzy''
places given over to roulette, dice and
cards, were forced to close. Some con-
tinue to operate, but, as the under.
world puts 1t, they are "sneaking,
accepting the patronage OF only care
fully chosen few.
broken up to a large extent the segre-
gated vice districts. resulting in smaller
houses scattered throughout the city.
Nevertheless, hardy colonies continued
in the old districts, about Twenty-sec-
oY1d street. about West Madison street,
and on the near North Side.
Vice Overlords Cautious.
One report this writer saw a few
months ago asserted there were 4,o0O
disorderly dives in the South Side
s'black belt" but other sources assert
the figure is exaggerated--an assertion
with which. the writer agrees.
The indications are that the 1000
figure would be approximately correct
for the entire city. --.se--.- <s-.1
Vice, in. company with the other
rackets. raised its head when Thompson
became mayor. But 1t, too, became
cautious with the appointment of Rus
sell. Organized vice continues, prob
ably will continue, but such open sol1c1-
tafion as there is is fugitive. given TO
taking to its heels at the sign Of a
policeman.
Least affected to date by the reform
wave are the beer. "alky'' and whisky
tacketeers.
There has been no sweeping Federal
drive in Chicago. United States District
Attorney George E. Q. johnson and
Prohibition Administrator E. c. Yellow
ley have contented themselves with
steady attack on saloons, speakeasies,
beer flats, stills and breweries.
Hardly month goes by but the Fed
eral seizures of booze and apparatus
totals more than Sl,o00,000. Yet the
supply goes on The Federal men con-
tinue their inroadS, but their efforts are
hampered by the racketeers' wealth, the
wet sentiment in Chicago and the
hands-off policy forced on local authori-
ties by that sentiment.
Criminals Enter Rum Business.
With the advent of prohibition dive
keepers, gamblers labor sluggers, stick
up men and safeblowers flocked into the
bootlegging racket. They made SO much
money their heads were turned. They
became greedy, greedy for more terri
tory, more money, more power.
Where in their previous occupations
the hoodlums were content to make a
few hundreds week, under prohibition
they made thousands and tens OF thou-
sands. Chicago had prospered, had
grown in size and earnings during the
World War years, and great harvest
was ready for the reaping of the
racketeers.
e-prohibition beer cost the saloon
keepers about SIS a barrel. Near-beer
today can be bought for SIS to $18 a
barrel. Good beer now costs the
saloonkeeper $55 a barrel, $5 of that,
SO we'll known it's common gossip, going
to certain local authorities for "the
fix"
Ali told there are about II 900 saloons,
speakeasies and beer fats in Chicago.
Fifteen thousand barrels of beer day!
The profits run into millions monthly.
Racketeers Operate Breweries.
Checking the beer supply in Chicago
has been made difficult since the huge,
old-time brewery went out Of the good
beer business. There is little needed
beer in Chicago today, that is beer
given kick" by a judicious injection
of alcohol and malt Most of the beer
offered in the city is made from wort
IN miniature breweries, strings of which
are maintained by all the major
racketeers. Federal men raid brewery
after brewery of this type, but the flow
of beer is never seriously diminished
II the brewer can keep his brewery go
ing for a month he has made more than
enough to stand "knock-over" and be
ready to open in another spot
The "alky" industry also is impor-
tant alcohol in Chicago being used a.
the base for nearly any potable from