The Barrel Mystery
CHAPTER XV
SOME "AFTER-DINNER" CONFESSIONS
"One night in the month of April (1909) I was sitting with the banditsin the stone house and listening to their stories. Calichio,Sylvester, Giglio and Bernardo were there. Among other exploitsCalichio remarked that he had once printed one million lire for abaronial family residing at Naples in Italy. This was about fifteenyears back, he said, when his father was alive.
"Sylvester boasted that his first sentence was for five years in thereformatory as a minor. He ran away from the reformatory in companywith several other boys and got into the horse-stealing business. Hewas sentenced several times for small offenses and he once wasarrested for carrying concealed weapons.
"During his imprisonment he came to know a certain Terranova, who wasa half-brother of Morello, and they became fast friends. They stolehorses in New York and sold them in other cities at reduced prices; orthey would bring the horses to friends in the country (Highland) andreceive payment. He told of being arrested once when with Morello'sson and brother; they had thrown a bomb into a store in Mott Street.They were let go because there were no witnesses to the crime. Inconcluding his recitation Sylvester said:
"'One night I went with the Morello brothers and other friends into ahall where a Jewish wedding was being celebrated. As we entered thehall we recognized two policemen who had helped us before in our jobs.Our idea was to steal watches. We succeeded in stealing about fifteenwatches when a Jew I was robbing got onto me. He grabbed me by thecoat and called the police. The policeman knew me and took my part. Hepushed the Jew aside and told him to go away. The policeman said heknew me to be a fine young man for more than ten years. The policemantold the Jew he was lying and that if he said any more about thematter he would be put under arrest. The Jew was crest-fallen, butwent on dancing all the same. As we came outside, I gave three watchesto the policeman, two of silver and one of gold. I disposed of theothers in New Jersey. We divided the proceeds equally among us.'
"Then Giglio made the boast that the police had never been able toarrest him. He had been in great danger, though, he said. One night inthe winter of 1906 he went to Newburgh to steal a horse and carriage.While running away with the stolen property he was shot at twice.Neither bullet hit him, though, he said. Two months later the samehorse and carriage were sold in Poughkeepsie for one hundred dollars.
"Bernardo had nothing to relate except the innocent amusement ofhaving stolen fruit in his native town. The others grinned.
"On April 26th or 27th the second lot of Calichio's two-dollar noteswere ready. They totalled fifteen thousand dollars and were wrapped upin rags. Giglio and Sylvester took them to New York.
"Calichio and I then renewed work on the five-dollar notes, which wefigured on finishing about the middle of May, when a communicationfrom New York made us stop again on the five-dollar notes, and westarted on the third lot of Calichio's two-dollar notes. During themonth of May, I, Calichio, Sylvester, Giglio and Bernardo all had ahand in the completion of this third lot of two-dollar notes, whichamounted to $10,000; then, too, we finished up by the end of May$14,700 of the five-dollar notes. During this period Calichio receivedhis wages punctually, but he did not let on to me.
"When the work had been completed I called Caterina aside and told herthat I was going to New York and would not return to the stone house,as I did not intend to continue at that sort of work. In fact, Idismantled the press, piece by piece, took the genuine five-dollarnote that was used for comparison, it being the original from whichthe plates were made, and said to Giglio:
"'Don Vincenzio, I am going to New York to seek rooms and will seeCecala there; I am going because, counting this last batch, I haveprinted about $60,000 and have received nothing for my labor.'
"'You deserve to have your head smashed on a rock,' was the cheerfulreply. 'If the money is not yet sold, who will you see to get paid?'
"'Cecala.'
"'Cecala is not in New York. If he were, I certainly would bring himthis last batch of money. We must wait until my brother-in-law comes.'
"'I don't care whether it is sold or not. I am in a miserablecondition and will not remain here.'
"'Do as you like, but look out, though, if you do any harm there willnot be a hair left of you.'
"'I want to go about my own business and do not care about others.'Thereupon, I took a suit-case with a few rags that I had left and wenton foot to the Highland Railroad station where I changed thefive-dollar bill and bought a ticket to New York. Arriving in the cityI went directly to my aunt's, who was surprised to see me so poorlyclad and in such a miserable condition. I told her that I had had aquarrel with my employer because he had not paid me.
"On June 2nd, while walking about my business, I met Cecala atBleecker and Carmine Streets. He laughed at me, shook my hand, andinquired why I had not remained at the stone house in Highland andcontinued the work.
"'I could not continue,' I replied, 'because I was treated tooshabbily there by the others. And why should I continue to work whenno word had come to us from New York for more than two weeks?'
"'Well, Don Antonio,' said Cecala, 'I will fix all your affairs sothat Caterina will remain in New York, for you and Don Peppe _mustcontinue the work_. The man who made the plates has been working onanother set of Canadian notes, not like the first that we printed, butof the same denomination, five dollars.'
"'Write and let Caterina come now,' I said. 'As to my doing more workfor you, let's talk about that later.'
"'It is not necessary to write; I will telephone. Come with me.' Froma drug store at Carmine and Bleecker Streets Cecala telephoned toHighland, or rather to Cina's house.
"Cina's wife said that her husband had gone with Ignazio (Lupo) toNewburgh and that she would tell him when he returned. Coming out ofthe drug store Cecala handed me ten dollars, saying:
"'Take this ten dollars and find rooms for yourself. I will providefor the rest later when Caterina comes to-morrow or the next day.Your things will arrive in a few days.' He told me to keep himadvised. I could meet him at a barber shop in Carmine Street, he said.
"Not seeing anything of Caterina, on June 4th I wrote a letter to Cinaat Highland, and requested him to send my things immediately and togive Caterina the money for her fare to New York.
"Cina received my letter and got the impression from it that I wasgoing to tell the police, and he went right over to the stone house toship my furniture.
"On the fifth of June, in the evening, Don Peppe (Calichio) came to myaunt's house and there told me that he had run away from the stonehouse with Caterina because they had threatened to kill him. He saidthat the threats were made by Sylvester, Giglio and Bernardo. Hearingthis I hastened out on the stoop and saw Caterina all trembling. Shesaid: 'I don't know how we escaped--Don Peppe and me.'
"'Why?'
"'Bernardo, Sylvester and Giglio wanted to kill us; and Bernardo hadalready got hold of a shovel to dig a hole.'
"'And who gave you the money for the fare?'
"'Lupo.'
"'How much did he give you?'
"'He gave ten dollars to Don Peppe in the presence of Cina, UncleVincent, and the other men, whom I do not know, and he gave me fivedollars.'
"'Well,' I said, 'to-night you will sleep at my brother's home, and donot tell him any stories nor let him understand the circumstances ofour trouble. To-morrow I will find a house. Cecala gave me ten dollarsthe other day.'
"I thanked Calichio for getting Caterina out of the stone house to NewYork, and then went away leaving Caterina at the home of my brother."