BIG PROFIT MADE ON LAND
avTr?f fir D 4 (a ,
mM Jiujcjf
,-a Lieut
Palermo
ns.sa:sinaMon of
Jiwciih Petrosi-
Iti Hip streets of
came very
e Hear to establishing
tin so-called 'I'.lnck
Hand" society lii i ho minds of
Anierlcnns as ;i definite ornaui.a
tion such us the Si('i!i,in Mal'a ami
the Neapolitan ('anion a. It wan
easy and alluring to ar,ue that
Petrosino, cleverest trailer of Ital
ian erlli'P and criminals, hail fa
en a victim to the International
order of l.u Mano Nera. Writers
were rot larking to Invent details.
Ilia death had been decreed, they
nald. hy one or the New York
chapters of the I5l.uk Hand and
tho sentence executed hy the home
branch at Palermo.
"We almost believe that there
is a Hlack Hand organization In
Italy and America." said the edi
tor of one of the big Italian dallies
tho day after the detective wa i
shot down. 'Tntll the death of
Petrosino I never believed that
there was head or tail to the
bomb -throwing blackmailers, but
the shot that struck Petrosino
would seem to piove that there is
a nyiitcm behind them."
To one who remembered how
violently that same
editor had for years
protested In Italian
and In Kngllsh that
there was no such
thing as a Black
Hand society, the
admission was sur
prising. Detectives
of the Manhattan
and Brooklyn Ital
ian police squads,
who had always
scoffed at an or
ganized IlIackHand.
wondered If they
had been mistaken.
'They sonrched the
v a r I o u 8 quarters
again for gome
traco of a central
body, for some sign
tha( there wera di
recting officers' This
. Petrosino tragedy
certainly savored of
the dread Mafia and
Camorra and there
Tftrf1..:!'.;..,;.'..
iVwiwrV'.H III V 9fe8jSr
VBMbfH;)iXApiJy . Ill ;
.PKmiwie'fif'Av- J9H I III r"i! wsl - II
'KMim fe' 5Y'''' MCA ' bott,e of cheflp red wlne-
IwHMi. cSSwMfe-'tr m 7 p,pe8 r draw through
IfrSw MlfOf - JfjMarl ; i straws on stogy-llke Italian
: !V$V -tVitW- I'f Mvi 1 cigars that retail for half a
fc wo, and have oeea for
"i
py.AvrQ 5y black -handzrs . V in 111
Which Can Be Bought for a Mer
Song in the Little Snake River
Valley, Routt County, Colo.
A ten per cent profit on a valuation
of over 200 an acre is what is being
made now by farmers in the Little
Snake Kiver valley in Routt County,
Colorado, and lands similar in quality
and with gilt edged water rights are
now offered by the State of Colorado
under the Carey Act at 935.50 per
acre on ten years' time.
This land will grow in abundance
oats, potatoes, sugar beet3 and all
other grains, grasses and root crops,
and is suitable for all kinds of fruit,
except possibly the most delicate of
tree fruits.
The land Is sold In tracts of 40, SO,
120 and ICO acres to citizens of the
United States, or those who have de
clared -their intentions of becoming
citizens. There is no drawing In con
nection with this land; first come,
first served being the policy.
If interested, write to the Routt
County Colonization Co., 1734 Welton
street. Denver; Colorado, for full in
formation as to tho land, special ex
cursion rates, etc.
SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS.
i T r.i-.'rx .v
yyrfA BLACK HMD o
'LETTFR
was not one of the lieutenant's squad who
would not have gladly risked his life to lay
hands on a real IilurU Hand chief.
Sober second thought and continued In
vestigation, however, return the Mack Hand
to Its proper category. It Is not and never
has been u society. It knows no chieftain, no
scale of spoil division, no sacred oath. It has
no meeting places, consequently holds no
meetings. It Is, In short, but a name for a
brand of crime peculiar to Italian crooks, and
it is so surprisingly successful becauso of the
touipornmcnt of its south Italian victims and
their inborn dred of the extortionist.
It is almost ludicrous to realize how the
name that la now a world-terror was Invented.
Some years ago the story of an Italian
murder was running In the New York news
papers. The police made little headway and
developments lagged. A space-writer on a
certain morning paper needed more money
than the story was bringing him. He could
get more space only by giving a new twist to
the crime, by working up an exclusive angle.
The victim of this murder had received a
letter warning him that death would follow
his failure to contribute a specified sum by
a.eertain date. At the top of the sheet was a
crude drawing of a fist holding a long, wicked
.looking dagger. It was drawn with black ink.
ji Mmbor. sinister emblem. For the reporter
it held an idea. The name "Black Hand
leaped from bis Imagination, and there you
are. With great circumstantial detail and
flaring heads ho Introduced his find to the
public. The murdered Italian was the victim
of a rnpcrloits organization of cut-throats. It
jwas the American edition of the much-feared
i Mafia, a reincarnation of the deadly Camorra.
and In it tho reporter combined the worst
I features of each.
This characterization was an Instantaneous
hit. The murder story was again
good for columns of space. The
Inventive reporter's rivals wept
him several better In succeeding
editions. They found meeting
places of the Black Hand. They traced other un
solved crimes of the Italian district to the same myth
ical source. The police said nothing. They had been
unable to solve the crime, but If it was the work of
a powerful secret organization there was some excuse
for them.
To the Italian blackmailers who thon, as now, lived
off the tribute they could wring from their brothers
who worked or who had prospered in business, the
appellation was a new and unexpected weapon, a
stock In trade beyond value. It was not copyrighted
and each and every one of them was free to use it
All "Little Italy" was talking of the Black Hand. Its
translation Into Italian & Mano Nera had an even
more sinister sound. The next lot of blackmailing
letters sent out bore the usual dagger, the skull and
cross-bones, the bloody finger pjjnt, perhaps the long,
black coffin', and every one was signed "La Mano
Nera." The Black Hand was launched and the crimes
since committed In its name number tens of thou
sands, the spoils collected have sent many a
criminal back to Italy with a fortune accord
ing to the Sicilian rating, and not even the po
lice will venture to estimate its cost in human
life.
The Black Hand crimes nil follow the same
general lines, but that Is no argument that
there is an organized society. The yeggraen
who terrorize country postmasters all work
after an Identical fashion, but no one has
ever Intimated that they were organized. Safe
crackers the country over use the samo tools
and methods, but who has susrectcd them of
holding conventions? The East side gangs
the "Humpty" Jacksons, the Paul Kellys and
the like plunder similarly with more or less
success, but the only connection between
gang and gang Is an occasional feud, the re
sulting "shooting up" of which gives the po
lice opportunity to send a gangster or two
to Sing Sing.
No Italian Is too lonely or too poor to em
bark as a Black Hander. A sheet of paper.
BARBER-SHOP WRFCKED
BY SLACK HAtfD &OM&
BLACK HAND WARWNQ
pen and Ink, and enough knowledge of Italian
to scrawl a few lines of demand and the ac
companying threat are all that Is necessary.
Possible victims are on every band. The bar
ber In the dingy basement half-way down the
block; the fat and timid grocery keeper on the
corner; Antonio, of the tenement Just below,
who goes out early each morning all dressed
In white to boss his gang of street sweepers
all these are possible victims of the single
handed Black Hander, and all sooner or later
pay tbelr tribute. Of course he signs himself
"La Mano Nera." and then sits back to wait
the working of the 6-ell of temperamental
dread.
About a table in a tllr.gy, low-celltnged
basement win shop off Mulberry Ilend or
over on nicecker street four or live greasy,
low browed men gather of an afternoon over a
- weeks, perhaps, but it is not possible oppor
tunities for labor that they discuss. Their
need of money is mentioned quite frankly. In
tho next breath one of the gang recalls that
Gluscppl, the tailor, looked sleek and prosper
ous standing in front of his shop an hour be
fore. Another cries for pen and paper, which
the master of the wine Bhop brings with never
a smile, though he knows only too well the
nature of the note that is about to be written.
One is silently nominated to scrawl the com
mand, another puts on the decorations and a
third signs "La Mano Nera." The tailor Is
ordered to come three nights later at 7:30
o'clock to the stone arch In Washington square
and hand $200 to a little man with a hump on
his back who will be waiting there. He is .
told further that if he falls or mentions the
letter to the police death and destruction will
be upon him.
The next morning Gluseppl has hardly
opened bis shop before the postman comes
with the letter. One glance at the clumsily
drawn black hand and the daggers scattered
about Is enough to tell him that the curse has
fallen. For a time he is too frightened to
read the sum of the extortion. The patrolman
on beat passes his door, a broad-shouldered,
strong-armed sign or law and order. A great
temptation comes to Gluseppl. He will be
brave as the American papers advise. He will
call the police. He rushes out after the po
liceman, only to be overcome with a blue funk
before he can blurt out his troubles, and ends
by asking some foolish question that haa no
bearing on the terrifying letter. So on the
appointed night he goes to Washington square.
The hunchback is there, waiting, with a par
ticular eye for possible treachery from plain
clothes policemen. Gluseppl slips the de
formed one an envelope and both hurry from
the spot In opposite directions. Around the
next corner the hunchback becomes a changed
man. The hump on his buck disappears and
the breaking off of a bit of putty straightens
a seemingly twisted none At the wlne-Bhop
the two hundred, perhaps the bulk of the tail
or's savings, Is speedily divided and the
blackmailers are ready for other weeks of
Idleness. Again the Black Hand!
There Is a" possibility of big rewards In the
game of plunder that has attracted criminals
of skill, darins and brains. Many of them are
ex-convlcts from Italy, who plun
dered there in the name of the Ma
fia or the Camorra. Others are
equally desperate criminals who got
away from Italy before being caught
and given the convict brand, which
makes entry Into America difficult
and remaining here uncertain with
Petroslno's band continually "fan
ning" the Italian quarters.
One of these skilled laborers of
crime or perhaps a pair of them
will gather about him four or five
dull, unimaginative, lazy fellows
preferably "black sheep" of the
town or section In Sicily from which
the leader came and there you
have as near an organization as the
Black Hand has yet perfected. Thla
leader is known to hlB followers as
a bad man. He has a record for
speedy carving with a dagger, per
haps, or a much-to-be-envied knack
of using his revolver quickly. He
rules the gang by fear of bloody
violence and does not even bother
to extract oaths from them.
Italian bankers, contractors, whole
sale dealers In spaghetti or olive oil
or wine, owners of equities in mort
gaged tenement houses these are
the victims of the big Black Hand
ers. One thousand dollars is the
least they strike for. Failure to pay
means that a bomb of crude but
deadly construction will be dropped
In front of the marked man's bank,
store or tenement house. Generally
the bomb is so thoroughly over
loaded with dynamite that it
wrecks much surrounding property,
but for that these land pirates care
not. Often the Innocent are slaugh
tered, but that brings not even a
shrug from these hyenas of the ten
ement. F.verv so-called Black Hand out
rage helps on the game of plunder
dru to' the fear of the myth
ical society. A lull In Black Hand
outrages by no means Indicates the
innetivltv olfthe plunderers.
erally It-spells their continued suc
cess.. i Lu
"You must always keep In mind,"
said Petrosino, the Palermo sac
.tn tn thla sort of Italian crime
"that the commission of crimes of
. ia nn the main issue wuu
thi acum of the earth. If a man
thai demands, pays over
their priced they Wwen.-satlsfUsd to Jet-hto
nlnntv
"Have you ever noticed." he continued "that
.u. i. hnmb throwing, more kidnaping,
more m j oiui iuu - - .
.t.. ti,n in the BDrlng, summer or early
fail The winter is the hard time of the year
with all Italians and naturally the collections
como harder. Men who have given up a few
,i,oi0ra now nnd then for months suddenly de
cide that, come what may. they will pay no
more. According to the laws of the trade
this means punishment and there you have
your outrages."
The Intense love which a respectable Ital
ian bears for his children has made kidnaplug
highly lucrative. '
The Italian kidnapers about New York
have been almost uniformly successful since
they began signing their letters "La Mano
Nera." In every case the child has been even
tually returned to his home or left where the
police would be sure to find him. Equally In
every case there have been Indications that
the father, in spite of the most strict instruc
tions to the contrary from the police, quietly
paid over the amount demanded by the Black
Handers or at least a aatlefylng portion of It.
Knowledge of kidnaping cases nearly al
ways gets to the police and without delay.
An Italian mother whose son falls to return
from an errand to the bake shop around the
corner or whose daughter disappears between
the public school and her home, does not fear
even the Black Hand. Her husband may
cringe and tremble when she suggests the po
lice, but If ho delays, the mother, with many
walls of anguish, rushes to the noarest police
station and blurts out the whole story. As a
rule the poiice have little or nothing on which
to work. They have the Black Hand letter
demanding the ransom, but of what good Is
that when the leader of the gang may be that
dapper, swarthy brother-in-law who Is even
then In the parlor mingling his temperamental
tears with those ul the family?
Gimlet Flbbs claims to have caught
a catfish weighing 50 pounds down
In the creek, does he? Well, It's safe
to say he's lying to the extent of about
40 pounds.
Hammer Not if he hears you say it
WHAT IS PAINTf
The paint on a house Is the extreme
outside of the house. The wood la
simply a structural under layer. That
is as It should be. Unprotected wood
will not well withstand weather. But
paint made of pure white lead and
linseed oil is an Invulnerable armor
against sun and rain, heat and cold.
Such paint protects and preserves,
fortifying the perishable wood with a
complete metallic casing.
And the outside of the house Is the
looks of the house. A well-constructed
building may be greatly depre
ciated by lack of painting or by poor
painting.
National Lead Company have made
It possible for every building owner
to be absolutely sure of pure white
lead paint before applying. They do
this by putting upon every package
of their white lead their Dutch Boy
Painter trademark. That trademark
is a complete guarantee.
True Thrift.
"When visiting a certain town In the
Midlands," says a medical man, "I was
told of an extraordinary Incident
wherein the main figure, an econom
ical housewife, exhibited, under trying
circumstances, a trait quite character
istic of her. It seems that she had by
mistake taken a quantity of poison
mercurial poison the antidote for
which, as all should know, comprises
the whites of eggs. When this anti
dote was being administered, the order
for which the unfortunate lady had
overheard, she managed to murmur, al
though almost unconscious. "Mary.
Mary! Save the yolks for the pud
dings!" Tit-Bits.
Why We Are Stronger.
The old Greeks and Romans were
great admirers of health and strength;
tbelr pictures and statuary made tht,
muscles of the men stand out like
.cords. , : -
' As a matter of fact we have ath
letes and strong men men fed on
fine strength making food such as
Quaker Oats that would win in any
contest with the old Roman or Greek
champions.
It's a matter of food. The finest food
for making strength of bone, muscle
and nerve is fine oatmeal. Quaker
Oats Is the best because It is pure, no
husks or stems or black specks. Farm
ers' wives are finding that by feeding
the farm hands plentifully on Quaker
Oats they get the best results In work
and economy. If you are convenient
to the store, buy the regular size pack
ages; If hot near the store buy the
large size family package. S
An Arbitrary Classification.
"So you think every patriot has a
more or less clearly defined ambition
to hold public office?"
"Yes," answered Senator' Sorghum.
"As a rule, patriots may be divided
Into two classes the appointed and
the disappointed."
His Helping Hand.
First Him When that man feU
overboard, why did you throw the
cigar I gave you after him?
i Second Him I thought I heard the
poor devil call for a rope!
Good for Sore Eyes,
for 100 ytsn PKTTII'S EYE SALVE h.
pfnUivtly cured tyt ifincaMS everywhere.
All druggists or Howard Droi.,uflslo, N. Y.
Bees sometimes fly two miles from
the hive and find their way back wltbr
out difficulty.
Mr. Winiiow'l Boothln Rfran,
Po ctittdrt n teflhlnit, Kiflrm tht glint, rviluroa t
emBiu)U.UnDm,curoi wloaoollu, Sbitbulb
A dead beat always gels more credit
than he deserves.