The Gangs of New York

by Herbert Asbury

  Kid Dropper was promptly arrested, but was discharged for lack of evidence, although his enmity toward Spanish was common knowledge, and it was shown that they had been at loggerheads over the little union business that was available, and had led their gangs on opposite sides in a garment strike. During the days of Monk Eastman and Paul Kelly, Kid Dropper had not been a thug of the first rank, but with the death of Johnny Spanish he became the most imposing figure in the underworld. In the old days, too, he had been slovenly in appearance and slouchy in gait, but he now undertook to dress according to his position, and appeared along Broadway and throughout the East Side in a belted check suit of extreme cut, narrow, pointed shoes, and shirts and neckties of weird design and color combination, while his pudge face, pasty gray from his long imprisonment, was surmounted by a stylish derby pulled rakishly over one eye. In the summer months he wore a straw hat with an extremely narrow brim and a brightly colored band. He also let it be known that he preferred to be called Jack, and named his gang the Rough Riders of Jack the Dropper.

  For some three years after he got out of prison Kid Dropper operated with considerable success around Madison, Monroe, and Rutgers streets, with occasional forays into the Broadway theatrical district and other areas, and appeared to possess a singular immunity. During this period the police implicated him in twenty murders, but were never able to obtain evidence sufficient to bring him to trial. Encouraged by the success of Kid Dropper, who was earning large sums by various criminal operations and by lending his sluggers to the few labor unions which still followed the practice of slugging their opponents, Jacob Orgen, otherwise Little Augie, who had been an obscure member of the Dopey Benny gang, emerged from retirement and organized a small group which he called the Little Augies. And Solomon Schapiro, who had been operating independently, appeared in the field with another small gang. The Rough Riders and the Little Augies were all Jewish gunmen and sluggers, while Schapiro’s men were Italians.

  Little Augie and Solomon Schapiro combined against Kid Dropper during a strike of wet wash laundry workers in 1923, and in August of that year the gangs fought a gun battle in Essex street, during which two innocent pedestrians were killed before they could scurry to safety, although none of the gangsters was wounded. Four days later Kid Dropper and fifteen of his thugs were arrested at Broadway and Forty-third street, buf there was scant evidence to connect them with the murders, and they were discharged upon arraignment before a Magistrate in Essex Market Court. The police then prepared to take Kid Dropper to the West Side Court, where a charge of carrying a concealed weapon had been made against him. Reports had reached Headquarters that the Rough Riders would attempt to rescue their chieftain, and half a dozen patrolmen and detectives were stationed in and about the building, under the command of Captain Cornelius Willemse, who had been active in the suppression of the East Side gangs. When Kid Dropper was led from the court room he was surrounded by policemen, all of whom had loosened their pistol holsters and were ready for trouble.

  Meanwhile a great throng had gathered in the street to see the famous gang leader, and Kid Dropper was escorted down a narrow lane through the crowd toward a taxicab which had been drawn up at the curb. The detectives saw the baleful eyes of Little Augie glaring at his enemy, but they did not see Louis Kushner, known in gang circles as Louis Cohen, for Louis lurked in a tenement house doorway across the street, a hand on his revolver, waiting for an opportunity to kill the chief of the Rough Riders. Kushner was a very minor follower of Little Augie, and heretofore had been entrusted only with the most menial of missions, even though he nursed an ambition to be a killer and see his name in the newspapers as a great gangster and a tough man. Likewise he nursed a great bitterness toward Kid Dropper because that eminent captain had only recently attempted to blackmail him out of five hundred dollars, having acquired damaging information respecting the slugging of a strike breaker. So Kushner had come to the Essex Market Court, not to see Kid Dropper, but to kill him, both for revenge and for glory.

  When Kid Dropper and the group of accompanying policemen reached the taxicab Detective Jesse Joseph opened the door and climbed in, followed by the gang chieftain, while Detective La Battaglia and Captain Willemse stood beside the door and delayed the departure of the cab for a moment to give instructions to the driver. In that moment Louis Kushner crept across the street, and unnoticed by the police gained the shelter of another taxicab alongside the vehicle through which the head of Kid Dropper could be seen against the small pane of glass in the rear. With the rapidity of a snake Kushner darted from behind the cab, pressed the muzzle of his revolver against the glass and pulled the trigger. The bullet crashed through the window and into Kid Dropper’s brain, and the gang leader collapsed with his head against Detective Joseph’s chest. Kushner fired again, and the chauffer screamed and clapped his hand to his ear. Two more shots roared from Kushner’s revolver, and Captain Willemse leaped toward him, thinking that Detective Joseph had been hit. Kushner twisted his arm and fired again, and a bullet whirled Captain Willemse’s hat from his head. But the next instant detectives had flung themselves upon Kushner and wrenched the revolver from his hand. He offered no further resistance; pale and with his eyes glittering wildly he faced the circle of policemen and sighed deeply:

  “I got him!” he said, simply. “I’d like a cigarette.”

  Little Augie and one of his principal henchmen, Sammy Weiss, were immediately arrested, but were soon discharged, for Kushner insisted that the murder of Kid Dropper was his own scheme and that Little Augie had given him no instructions. In the course of time the young killer was sent to Sing Sing to serve from twenty years to life. Dropper’s gangsters quickly dispersed after the death of their leader, and a few weeks after the shooting the police had a serious talk with Solomon Schapiro and Little Augie. Just what they were told is unknown, but both immediately retired from business. Schapiro dropped out of sight, while Little Augie, by far the more dangerous of the pair, was ordered to report twice a week to the Clinton street police station. And what a spectacle that must have been for the shades of Monk Eastman and Mose the Bowery boy—Little Augie, the last of the gang captains, fat, flashy and addicted to fawn colored spats, standing meekly before a police sergeant and recounting his doings, refreshing his memory from entries in a notebook!

  The police relieved Little Augie of this onerous obligation after two years, but detectives continued to keep him under more or less strict surveillance, and for several years he perforce lived quietly. Then, late in 1925, he began bootlegging along Broadway, supplying liquor to speakeasies and night clubs. Great success attended his new enterprise, and within a year he told his friends that he would soon be able to retire. But hquor peddlers whose customers he had appropriated had marked him for death, and on October 16, 1927, Little Augie was killed in front of No. 103 Norfolk street, between Delancey and Rivington, while talking to his bodyguard. Legs Diamond. Four men drove up in a black touring car, and when Little Augie turned in response to a hail, one of them shot him in the back of the head. He was buried in a massive cherry-red coffin lined with white satin, and on the lid gleamed a silver plate:

  JACOB ORGEN Age 25 Years.

  His real age was thirty-three. But it had been eight years since he had assumed active leadership of his gang, and on that day his father had proclaimed him dead.

  SLANG OF THE EARLY GANGSTERS

  THE FOLLOWING slang terms are from ''Vocabulum, or. The Rogue’s Lexicon,” by George W. Matsell, Special Justice and Chief of the New York Police. It was first pubhshed in 1859 by George W. Matsell & Company, proprietors of the National Police Gazette, It is interesting to note that of the words and phrases which are still in use, the meaning of many has entirely changed. Others, however, retain their ancient meanings, and have been appropriated by the modern wise-cracker:

  Ace of Spades. A widow.

  Active citizen. A louse.

  Addle-cove. A foolish man.

  Alamort. Confounded; struck dumb;
unable to say or do anything.

  Ankle. The mother of a child born out of wedlock.

  Anointed. Flogged.

  Autum. A church.

  Autum bawler. A parson.

  Baby paps. Caps.

  Ballum-rancum. A ball where all the dancers are thieves and prostitutes.

  Balsam. Money.

  Bandog. A civil officer.

  Baptized. Liquor that has been watered.

  Barking irons. Pistols.

  Barrel fever. Delirium tremens.

  Bat. A prostitute who walks the street only at night.

  Beak. A magistrate; a judge. Beans. Five dollar gold pieces. Ben. A vest.

  Benjamin. A coat.

  Bens. Fools.

  Billy Noodle. A soft fellow who believes all the girls are in love with him.

  Bingo. Liquor.

  Bingo-boy. A drunken man. Bingo-mort. A drunken woman. Black-box. A lawyer.

  Black ointment. Raw meat.

  Bleak. Handsome. “The moll is bleak”; the girl is handsome. Bleak mort. A pretty girl.

  Bloke. A man.

  Blowen. The mistress of a thief. Bludget. A female thief.

  Blue ruin. Bad gin.

  Blunt. Money.

  Boke. The nose.

  Boodle. A quantity of bad money.

  Booly dog. A policeman.

  Bouncer. A fellow who robs while bargaining with the storekeeper.

  Brads. Money.

  Brass. Money.

  Broads. Cards.

  Broken leg. A woman who has a child out of marriage.

  Bucks-face. A cuckold.

  Bull. A locomotive.

  Bully. A lump of lead tied in the corner of a kerchief.

  Buzz. To search for and steal.

  Cab moll. A woman who keeps a bad house.

  Cad. A baggage smasher; a railroad conductor.

  Cain and Abel. A table.

  Can. A dollar.

  Canary bird. A convict.

  Captain Heeman. A blustering fellow.

  Captain Toper. A smart highwayman.

  Caravan. Plenty of money.

  Casa. A house.

  Case, A dollar.

  Castor. A hat.

  Cat. A prostitute; a cross old woman.

  Century. One hundred dollars.

  Charley. A gold watch.

  Charley Prescot. A vest.

  Chink. Money.

  Chips. Money.

  Church. A place where the markings on stolen jewelry are changed.

  City College. The Tombs.

  Clout. A handkerchief.

  Conk. The nose.

  Cove or covey. A man.

  Cow. A dilapidated prostitute. Cows and kisses. The ladies.

  Crib. A house.

  Crokus. A doctor.

  Crusher. A policeman.

  Cull. A man; sometimes a partner. Cymbal. A watch.

  Dace. Two cents.

  Daddies. Hands.

  Dangler. A seducer.

  Devil books. Cards.

  Dews. Ten dollars.

  Diddle. Liquor.

  Diddle cove. A landlord.

  Dimber mort. A handsome girl. Diver. A pickpocket.

  Diving Bell. A rum shop in a basement.

  Dopey. A thief’s mistress.

  Dots. Money.

  Emperor. A drunken man.

  Eriffs. Young thieves.

  Evil. A wife.

  Fag. A lawyer’s clerk.

  Faker. A jeweller.

  Fams. Hands.

  Fan. A waistcoat.

  Fanny Blair. The hair.

  Fawney. A ring.

  Fenced. Sold.

  Fibbing. Striking with the fist. Figure dancer. One who alters the numbers or figures on bank bills. Finniff. Five dollars.

  Flappers. Hands.

  Flash panny. A house frequented by rogues of both sexes.

  Flat. A man not acquainted with the tricks of rogues.

  Flimp. To tussle or wrestle.

  Fork. A pickpocket.

  Friday face. A dismal countenance.

  Frog. A policeman.

  Frog and Toe. The city of New York.

  Gadding the hoof. Going without shoes.

  Gagers. Eyes.

  Gan. The mouth or lips.

  Gander. A married man not living with his wife.

  Gelter. Money.

  German flute. A pair of boots.

  Gigg. The nose. “Snitchel the bloke’s gigg”: smash the man’s nose.

  Gip. A thief.

  Gob. The mouth.

  Gonnoff. A thief who has attained the higher walks of his profession.

  Gooh. A prostitute.

  Gooseberry pudding. A woman.

  Goosing slum. A brothel.

  Governor’s stiff. A governor’s pardon.

  Ground sweat. A grave.

  Gun. A thief.

  Gutter lane. The throat.

  Guy. A dark lantern.

  Hackum. A bravado; a slasher.

  Hamlet. A captain of police.

  Handle. Nose. “The cove flashed a rare handle to his physog”: the fellow has a very large nose.

  Harp. A woman.

  High pads. Highway robbers. High tohers. Gonnoffs.

  High toby. A highway robber.

  Hob or nob? What will you drink? Hockey. Drunk.

  Hogg. A ten cent piece.

  Hoister. A shoplifter.

  Huey. The National Police Gazette.

  Idea pot. A man’s head.

  Intimate. A shirt.

  Jack. A small coin; money.

  Jack Cove. A mean, low fellow.

  Jacob. A ladder.

  Jaw coves. Lawyers.

  Jew's-eye. A pleasant sight.

  Jomer. A mistress.

  Joseph. A coat that’s patched; a sheepish, bashful fellow.

  Joseph’s coat. Guarded against temptation. ‘T say, my bene blowen, can’t you kiddy the bloke?” “It’s no use trying, he wears a Joseph coat.” I say, my good girl, can’t you seduce the fellow? It’s no use trying, he is guarded against temptation.

  Joskin. A countryman.

  Ken. A house. “Bite the ken,” rob the house.

  Kiddies. Young thieves.

  Kirkbuzzer. A fellow who picks pockets in churches.

  Kitchen physic. Food.

  Laced mutton. A common woman.

  Lady. A humpbacked female.

  Lady bird. A kept mistress.

  Leaf. Autumn.

  Left handed wife, A concubine. Lib. Sleep.

  Life preserver. A slung-shot.

  Mab. A harlot.

  Magg. A half cent.

  Marking. Observing.

  Moll. A woman.

  Moll buzzer. A thief who picks women’s pockets.

  Moon. One month.

  Mort. A woman.

  Moses. A man who fathers another’s child for a consideration. Mow. To kiss. “The bloke was mowing the molly”: the man was kissing the girl.

  Muck. Money.

  Mush. An umbrella.

  My Uncle. A pawnbroker.

  Music. A verdict of not guilty.

  Ned. A ten dollar gold piece. Neddy. A slung-shot.

  Nickey. The devil.

  Nope. A blow.

  Nose. A spy, an informer.

  Ochre. Money.

  Ogles. The eyes.

  O.K. All right. “Oil kerect.” Oliver. The moon.

  Owls. Women who walk the streets at night.

  0 Yes. To cry out.

  Pad. A street; a highway.

  Pad the hoof. Walk the street. Padding ken. A lodging house. Panny. A house.

  Panzy. A burglar.

  Picture frame. The gallows.

  Pig. A policeman.

  Pigeon. An informer.

  Ponce. A man who is kept by a woman.

  Pop. To pawn.

  Pops. Pistols.

  Popshop. Pawnbroker’s shop.

  Rabbit. A rowdy. “Dead Rabbit,” a very athletic, rowdy fellow. Rabbit suckers. Young spendthrifts. />
  Rag. A dollar.

  Rap. To take a false oath.

  Reader. A pocketbook.

  Red. Gold.

  Red Super. A gold watch. Regulars. Share or portion. Rhino. Money.

  Rub. Run.

  Rub us to whit. Send us to prison. Ruffian. The devil.

  Rumbeak. A judge who can be bribed.

  Saint Giles Buzzman. A handkerchief thief.

  Saint Terra. A churchyard.

  Sam. A stupid fellow.

  Sawney. Bacon; fat pork.

  Scandal soup. Tea.

  Screw. A key.

  Screwsman. A burglar who works with keys.

  Shakester. A lady.

  Sheeney. A Jew thief.

  Sheriff’s ball. An execution. Shines. Gold coin.

  Sky blue. Gin.

  Slum. A package of bank bills. Slumming. SteaUng packages of bank bills.

  Snafflers. Highwaymen.

  Spark. A diamond.

  Stretch. One year.

  To break a leg. To seduce a girl. Toby. The highway.

  Tombstones. Teeth.

  To bounce him. To get one’s property and refuse to pay for it. Turkey merchants. Purchasers of stolen silks.

  Upper Benjamin. An overcoat. Vamp. To pledge.

  Vampire. A man who lives by extorting money from men or women seen coming from a house of assignation.

  Velvet. The tongue.

  Venus’ curse. Venereal disease.

  Wattles. The ears.

  Whit. A prison.

  Wife. A fetter fixed to one leg.

  Wire. A pickpocket.

  Yack. A watch.

  Yam. To eat.

  An Example

  Tim Sullivan buzzed a bloke and a shakester of a reader. His jomer stalled. Johnny Miller, who was to have his regulars, called out “copbung,” for as you see, a fly-cop was marking. Jack speeled to the crib, where he found Johnny Doyle had been pulling down sawney for grub. He cracked a casa last night, and fenced the swag. He told Jack as how Bill had flimped a yack, and pinched a swell of a spark fawney, and had sent the yack to church, and got half a century and a finniff for the fawney.

  BIBLIOGRAPHY

  MOST or the material in this book was obtained from the newspapers and magazines, from police and court records, and from personal interviews with criminals and police officials. In addition, more than two hundred books and pamphlets were consulted, including standard histories and works of reference; reports of reform agencies; reminiscences of criminals and police and court officials; handbooks, guide-books, etc. Following are a few of the outstanding volumes: