The Washington times., 1932-07-18
Had a Real Purpose

tHO 1IoL W NOtuIIlCCIs
Had a Real Purpose
Think you. though. that Jerry
did all this without a basic
purpose? Say not so, my chill
dren. There was a method in
his gladneSS. When one of the
other boys miSbehaved, the
teacher always sent the par
entS a note to explain things.
And it was Jerry's duty TO de-
liver all such notes.
Well, sometimes he did and
sometimes he didn't. 1t de-
pended entirely upon the state
Of the offending boys worldly
goods. If he had sufficient pen
nieS to turn over to Jerry. the
note was never delivered-and
Jerry fixed the teacher with an
excuse.
Thus Jerry'S career was set
tied at a very early age. He'd
always be exactly what he was
"a born fixer.
AS he grew older the youth
Immediately Joined the local po-
litical club and embarked upon
his fixing voyage. He mixed
with the right higher-ups and
fawned upon the men who
might do him the most good.
If one of the neighborhood
youngsters was arrested for
some petty crime. Jerry was
able to fix the case in no time.
If a Storekeeper was handed a
violation that kept him awake
at nights. he had no peace
until Jerry fixed it for him.
And so it went. Jerry was
waxing prosperous-and it was
his boast that, for enough
money, he was in a position to
fix almost anything.
Was Prize Fixer
With the arrival of pro-
hibition our alleged hero really
made good his boast. He had
access to the private offices of
practically every local and Fed
efal politician in town. The
cops and their superiorS bowed
to him.
For a number of years every
thing rolled along in n1agnifi-
cent fashion. And then, almost
overnight; Jerry fell into a
situation that required plenty
of thought and consideration.
Jerry looked at the matter
and wished very cordially for
some master fixer whom he
might call on to adjust his pre-
cariouS position.
For since he had been sailing
along very nicely in the pro-
hibition seas, he never dreamed
that he might be caught be-
tween two mobs. He knew that
the racket was no child'S play,
but everybody had been so cor
dial to him that he thought he
was immune to all of the usual
difficulties. It suddenly turned
out that he was very wrong.
Two of the most important
mobS in town-let's call them
the properties of Big Jim and
Little Joe-Were fighting for
control of a certain section of
the city. In order to win the
battle, one of the mobs would
have to get the okay of a big
political figure in that section.
And Jerry was the only man IN
town who stood a good chance
Of getting that okay.
Within two days, then, Jerry
had two very important visi-
tors. One was Big Jim; the
other was Little Joe-and if
they had called at the same
time. there is no telling what
might have happened.
Both mobsters were very
pleasant to Jerry-but beneath
the sweetness was a coldnesS
that made the fixer shiver.
Their requests were practically
identical, for both men wanted
the same okay. And each man
assured Jerry that his end of
the deal would easily run into
100000.
Tough Problem
But Jerry wanted none of it,
and I can't say that I blame
him a great deal. If he swung
the okay to Big Jim, Little
joe mob would never be con-
tent until Jerry's chest looked
lWhnn The Enat,1rnlal