Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1951-11-02

MANS able to operate without
the law.
In many big cities, young people
come into maturity with an attitude
of contempt for the law, because
they see and hear almost daily,
that criminals, through alliances
with conniving politicians ID
crooked law enforcement officers,
are bigger than the law. 1t would be
a frightful thing if this same disil-
lusionment should spread to the
small-town youngsters of America.
The committee touched briefly on
one such case study in its ques-
tioning, both privately and in pub
lie hearings in Chicago, of a man
named Thomas J. Cawley
In way, Cawley, a stocky, un-
abashed, monosyllabic witness, was
a refreshing change from the pro-
cession of hoodlum witnesses whose
carefully rehearsed refrain, Il re-
fuse to answer on the ground it
might tend to incriminete me- be-
came so grating to our ears. He, at
least, made no bones of the fact
that Thomas J. CaWley was the I'M
disputed gambling king of two small
Illinois towns-LaSalle, population,
1908, and Streator, population,
16,442. The two towns, both in La
Sale county, are about q miles
apart.
l should like to quote simple and
unadorned excerpts from the official
record of the examination of this
small-town gambler
Cawley's first appearance was
in executive (closed) session, Oc-
tober 10, 1850, at the U. S. Court
house in Chicago.
@. What is your business, MIR.
Cawley? A. A cigar store operator.
@. What other business do you
have? A. l operate farm and
book.
Q. Where do you operate your
book? A. 62l First St, LaSalle, III.
@. Is that the only book you op-
crate? A. l operate one in Strea-
tor, Ill.
Q. Is it (the Streator operalion)
solely book? A. Well, it is a gam
bling room, is what it is. We have
dice.
Q. You also have gambling equip
ment? A. Yes.
@. What type of games do you
run? A. Dice.
@. Roulette? A, Roulette, La Sale,
and that is ell
Cawley went on to say that ne
avorlnuc about EE 10
LaSalle; this includes his restau-
rant, bar and cigar store en-
ployees, in addition to the gambling
help.
@. How long have you operated
the book there? A. imagine
around IS years.
@. Is that in LaSalle? A. In La
Sale; at Strcator. l would say 10
years.
Q. Who is sheriff of that county?
A. The sheriff now is Ryan.
Q. Hoy long have you known
him? A. l hardly know the man.
@. Did you know Mike Welter?
A. Yes, sir He was sheriff three
terms =.
Q. Did you contribute to the cam
paign funds of any of the other Sher-
ifs? A. No, sir; only Mike Welter.
Q. How much did you contribute
to his campaign? A. $500.
@. Mike Welter knew what bust
ness you were in? A. l wouldn't
know whether he would or not.
@. What we want to get at is:
How can you run wide open down
there without the sheriff knowing
about it and doing something about
it? 1t is generally known, is it not,
that you operate these places? A.
That is right. l was born and raised
there. had a good friend, the may
or of the town, and he wouldn't let
none of them politicians come into
our city.
@. He would not let any politicians
come in? A. He wouldn't let them
politicians come from the county
into the city from LaSalle. -
@. He would not let the sheriff
come in? A. That is right
@. So he is the one who let you
keep on running; is that it? A. He
never let me keep on running. He
didn't do any more for me than he
would for anybody else Anybody
can go down IN that town right to-
day and open up, and it doesn't cost
them Scent piece.
@. The sheriff does not bother you?
A. That is right.
Q. Do the people lie it, you
think? A. l think they do-90 per
cent of them.
@. What is the present Chief of