Evening star., 1951-03-01
Crime Data Indicate
More Is Spent on Bets
Than Clothing in U. 5.

BY estimating the gambling
business amounts to $40 billion a
year, the Senate Crime Investi-
eating Committee is saying in
effect that Americans are putting
more money into bets than they
are into clothing, survey showed
today.
The committee, in it's interim
report yesterday. rated gambling
as the principal source of income
for organized gangs in this coun-
try but made it clear the gangs
are also active in the narcotics
trade, prostitution and variety
of semi-legitimate enterprises.
Sees Government Defrauded.
The report did not estimate
what the total take of the organ
ized crime syndicates amounts to
but did say the Federal Govern
ment Is being defrauded of
perhaps hundreds Of millions of
dollars in tax revenues by the
mobsters.
And the man rated as the cZar
of this underworld activity by the
role the committee gives him as
arbiter of disputes between two
major crime syndicates is living
aff1uently-but with virtually no
visible means of support-out of
the range of United States law
enforcement authorities. The
committee said the head man is
Charles lucky Luciano, deported
one-time vice lord.
Breakdown of Expenses.
Just what the estimated outlay
of $40 billion for gambling means
in terms of other ways the Amer
lean people spend their money
shows up in a survey made by
the Associated Press. For example,
here are the Commerce Depart
ment figures on total amounts
spent on retail purchases:
Overall consumer spending
Currently, record 1888 billion a
year.
Outlays on autos and parts,
$12.8 billion year; on gas and
oil. $5.3 billion.
Furniture and other household
effectS$131 billion.
Clothing and shoes-$19.4 bill
lion.
Tobacco-$4.5 billion.
Food and drink, including liquor,
beer, wine, etc.-$621 billion.
A $40 billion a year gambling
bill would dwarf the aggregate
prices of all houses bought in
year, which latest Federal Reserve
Board data place at $11.2 billion
in 1949.
Taxwise. it's big money, too.
President Truman figures to get,
out of individual income taxes at
present levels, $21 .599 billion for
this fiscal year, $26.025 billion for
next.
Naturally, the gambling opera
tors are going to contribute to
those tax totals. too, although the
Senate committee contends their
tax payments are many millions
of dollars, perhaps running into
hundreds of millions" less than
they should be.
The committee made it plain it
did not mean gambling operators
are clearing" as a profit all the
money they take in, although it
did say "a not inconsiderable por-
ton" of the $40 billion "stays with
promoters and operators"
"Take" Siphoned Off.
According to the committee.
much of the take of the local
bookies are siphoned off by the
major crime syndicates. Luciano,
the report said, maintains his as
sociations with these mobs
through his former racketeer af-
filiates.
Manhattan's one-time vice king,
now SIS, was deported to Italy just
five years ago this month. In
1949 he was expelled from Rome
as a crime threat" after Ameri-
can agents questioned him about
possible links with an interna-
tional drug ring.
The committee in it's report said
Frank Costello and Joe Adonis
headed one Of the two crime syn
dicates over which Luciano served
as arbiter of disputes. In New
York, Costello's attorney, George
Wolf, said the committees charges
sounded to him like "the same
old'' accusations made before
against Costello.
Mr.. Wolf said Costello testified
for six hours before the Senate
crime investigators, was praised
for his "forthrightness" and de-
MED any connections with "these
syndicated crime gangs"
In st. Louis Attorney Morris
Shenker strongly criticized the