Evening star., 1947-01-26

the town how to run a racket.
They introduced the typewriter" !"
or portable machine gun, backing
up their commands with chatter
ing of bullets.
One of the first to challenge the
new reign was Dion Danny" O'Ban-
ion, staggering ex-jackroller and
safecracker. O'Banion came out
such a poor second best that he
furnished the corpse for the first
Of Chicago's fabulous gangland
funerals of bronze cof1ins and ex-
quisite flowers.
Capone Became "Top Man."
The O'Banion killing occurred
November 10, 1924, in the victims
flower shop across the street from
Holy Name Cathedral. Torrio didn't
snow it, but his decision to eliminate
O'Banion set Capone up in business
as top man.
A short time later O'Banion's
henchmen nailed Torrio to his door
step with a hail of lead, and the
former New York bad man retreated
to retirement on Long Island.
At 26 Capone moved in as "the
big fellow" and from 1925 until he
lost his immunity to the law there
was perpetual gang war, and When
ever another perforated body was
found the name of Capone newt
ably came up.
Only twice was he called up to
answer in the courts for murder and
then, as in all other charges brought
against him. suave attorneys talked
him out Of trouble.
In 1925 he was charged with the
murder of William H. McSwiggin,
an assistant States attorney of Cook
County, and two companions known
as rivals for Capone's beer business.
The case was dismissed for lack of
evidence.
The other time that Capone was
accused of being the trigger man
was when a. derelict named Joe
Howard paid off for hi-jacking Ca
pone beer and whisky trucks. Be-
fore he died, Howard said young
fellow named Az shot him. But like
a later Federal LIQUOR conspiracy in
dictment and charges of election
fraud in a Chicago suburb, this case
died aborning.
Entered New Fields.
The syndicate grew as Capone
grew, operating from suburbs like
Cicero and Burnham, and eliminat-
ing gangs that dared test his
strength. He pushed into new fields.
gambling, dog racing, politics and
even into the bloody feud for su-
premacy in the "Unione Sicilana "a
a vendetta that had claimed Is
lives since 1924
Guns cut down Hymie Weiss and
Vincent Drucci, successors to
O'Banion. Another threat to Ca
pone supremacy ended when Spike
O'Donnell got out of the rackets.
Joe Salts retired to a Wisconsin
farm, where it was healthier.
The Weiss assassination in 1926
was one of Chicago's most spectacu-
lar. Pointing machine guns from a
window opposite Holy Name Cathe-
dral, the killers sprayed the streets,
Staying Weiss, a lieutenant named
Paddy Murray and wounding three
others.
When the smoke had cleared
away, bullets had chipped the cathe-
dral cornerstone which carried
these words:
"At the name of Jesus every knee
should bow in Heaven and on
EARTH"
Flashing expensive jewelry. Ca
pone later casually talked to report
ers. In his hand he held the picture
of a 7-year -old boy, his son. Calling
for a truce in the war for vice con-
troll, he said:
Il don't want to break the hearts
of people who love me. Maybe I
can make them think OF their
mothers and sisters and if they
think of them they'll put away
their guns and treat their business
like any one else. After working