The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-02-26
BEER RACKET is
CAPONE'S BEST,
SAYS RANDOLPH
Chicago Drinks 25,000,000
PlntS Weekly, Asserts
Secret Six Head.

~ Times Special
NEW YORK, Feb. 26.-Chicago' S
present consumption of illegal beer
is 100000 pints weekly, and the
money available to AL Capone's syn
dicate for protection" is upward
Of 81 900 900 per week, according 10
figures made public today by Col
onel Robert Isham Randolph, presi-
dent Of the Chicago Chamber Of
Commerce, and spokesman for the
Chicago business mems commit
tee for the prevention and punish
ment Of crime, colloquially known in
Chicago as the Secret Six"
The figures set down by our OPP
eratiyes," Colonel Randolph will say
IN Golfers Weekly Friday, ARE for
Cook county. which is to all in
tents and purposes identical with
Chicago. There we're found in Cook
county some 10000 beer Joints,
served with beer by professional
bootleggers. the bulk of whom be-
long to the organization headed by
Al Capone.
Such smaller running gangs
as flourish in the city pay Capone
tribute for the privilege. Capone is
the vice lord of Chicago, and with
out his beer trade he would not be
the menace that he is. All other
illegal operations OF his band are
but outgrowths of the beer racket.
Beer Pays Protection
The impudence with which he
and his men operate houses OF
prostitution, perpetrate pay roll rob-
berries and jewelry holdups, muscle
their way into labor unions and
merchants associations, is due to
the protection paid reinforcement
Weaklings out Of treasury that
beer profits have filled.
Consider Capone's profits in
beer. He and his syndicate con-
tol the illicit business from manu-
facture to distribution. They own
a string Of breWeries and control
the output Of many others, operat-
ing them periodically or constantly,
depending upon how often the law
enforcers are bribed.
Exactly how many barrels of
beer the syndicate sells in Chi
cago each week could only be told
by Capone, himself Our investi-
gators estimate that the 10000
spots ayenge five barrels per week,
the syndicate profiting from the
handling Of 100000 barrels of beer
every seven days, making Cook
county's normal consumption of
beer some 25,O00,0o0 pints a week,
or six pints per inhabitant.
Sales in Bulk
Most of this is sold in bulk. Much
of it is bottled in the syndicate
plants where it can be labeled
Canadian Ale as easily as not.
Usually the syndicate keeps up a
pretense that the draft beer, de-
livered in barrels, is only near beer,
but even the policemen on the beat
laugh at that.
Our investigation shows that it
costs Capone $3.50 to brew barrel
OF beer and that other manufacture
ing charges, such as cooperage,
bring the total to no more than 50.
The standard normal price charged
speakeasies is $55, leaving a gross
profit of $50.
THE least expense of distribution
is trucking The highest item is
protection. Armed guards who ac-
company the trucks and gunner
hoodlumS who collect from the pro-
prietorS Of the Speakeasies can be
had by Capone for 500 to $3.50 a
week. Higher salaried gangsters are
needed to fix the police and still
more intelligent operators are used
to Sc the right politicians.
Pay Roll Of 1000
The closest estimate we can
make Of men on Capones pay roll
is 1000, counting brewers, truckmen,
armed guards, collectors, flxers and
custodianS Of brothels, gambling
houses and handbooks which his
syndicate directly owns.
"Capone's business is an expensive
one. How far his bribery extends
into the police department is a mat
ter of conjecture. Sergeants, lieu
tenants and captains on the force
are the men Capone must fix, and
some OF them have become suspl-
ciously wealthy in recent years.
Wnen police captain can make
$4,000 merely by shutting his eyes
to the weekly delivery of truck
loaas OF beer in an obscure alley.
what do you think he will do?
"Capone can set aside $40 from
the profits of each barrel of beer
and use it as slush fund. That
figure is what our investigators be-
lieye he allows for protection. Prof
iting from the sale of 100000 bar
rels Of beer week, he could thus
have the staggering total of
100000 to lavish on corruption