U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 40, 17 February 1933, Page 7

U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT

SHOTS FIRED AT PARTY

MAYOR OF CHICAGO HURT

MR. ROOSEVELT ESCAPES

Dnlted Press Association—By Electric Tele- ■' - graph—Copyright. ;I MIAMI (Florida), February 16. . While a public reception to the President-elect, Mr. F. D. Roosevelt, was in progress at Bay Front Park, Biscayne Bay, five shots, were 'fired into the official party. * Mr. Roosevelt %vas not injured, but the Mayor of Chicago, Mr. Anton Cermak, who . was standing within < "twenty feet of i Mr. Roosevelt, - was dangerously wounded, and1 his; life is in grave danger. >. " The man who is alleged to haye fired the shots was immediately ar- • rested.',' • " There .is some conflict of opinion 1 as to whether the bullets were in-. , tended for Mr. Roosevelt or Mr. Cermak. It is emphasised that Mr. Cermak, in his efforts to "clean up" ! Chicago, has incurred the enmity of. powerful gangsters. ' four others, two of whom 'are ' women, were wounded during the shooting. One of the injured .women is ' Mrs. Joseph Gill, wife of the president of the Florida Po'w«r and Light Company. . / • Mr. Boosevelt had just landed after a yachting trip in the Bahamas. ASSAILANT AN ITALIAN. [ The assailant has identified himself j as Giuseppe Z'angara, a brick, mason of New York, who has been a resident 'of Miami for two months. He uttered an excited, incoherent statement to the . police. Ho declared himself opposed to ' all rich men; that lie had planned an ■ attempt on the life of the King of Italy; that he had no pt-sonal animus : against Mr. Eoosevelt, but wanted to ' kill all officers of the Government. ' A woman said to be his wife is re- | ported to have been, arrested, Six shots altogether were fired, the last'.sliot going "wild" through Mrs. Cross, of Miami, gripping the shooter's : wrist; ■ ' ■.; ■.-. .■ - ■ ■:• "I am. sorry I did not kill him; I want to kill,all Presidents," Zimgara, said in a statement to county officials > after his aTrest. Zangara was .jostled by the crowd that swarmed after him following his aTrest, and he was. housed for safety in the Dade County Gaol, which is twenty^ne floors above the. street.' | Eye-witnesses said that the shooter did not aim at Mr. Eoosevelt, but at Mr. Cermak. The would-be killer waited until Mr. Eoosevelt had passed and had taken his seat. ~ MR. CERMAK'S CASE. A physician who performed an emer',gency operation on Mr. Cermak states > that he has a chance of Jiving, . , Mr, Eoosevelt waved, his hands in 1 the air after the shooting to indicate . that he was not.'hurt. .. : Mr. Cermak, who was spending, a , vacation here, was. standing on the running-board of Mr, Eoosevelt's motorcar whe». the shots, wore fired. He, , with Mrs. Gill, was placed by members i of the President-elect's party in the ■ tonneau of/the car and taken to hospital. The assailant fired from a distance of 15ft to 20ft to the rear and right of Mr; Eoosevelt's car. Some of :the witnesses, including the Federal Bepresentative-elect, Mr. Wilcdx, of Miami, said:'"The shooter did not aim at Mr. Eoosevelt. Ha .was shooting at Mr. Cermak; there is no . doubt of that."' - : Secret service men who leaped from Mr. Eoosevelt'a car, in which they were acting as the usual guard, to ..grapple with the assailant were aided by local citizens in capturing Zangara. Mr. Eoosevelt's trip: north has been temporarily cancelled to enable him to remain near Mr. Cermak. In a, statement Mr. Eoosevelt said he was entirely unharmed. He was deeply moved by the serious injuries inflicted upon his friends. He is remaining in Miami to learn in the morning their condition. , '■_ '".'.-" It is known that since' taking: office in Chicago Mr. Cermak has been pushing a relentless drive to wipe out the remnants of Capone's gang. A special policeman from his.office recently 'shot and wounded. Frank Nitti, one of Capon©'3 lieutenants. .',."'. The Mayor's offensive against gangsterdoin is inspired. by a desire to rid tho city of its worst menace beforei the opening of jthe "World's Fair. ■'.';' _.-.., ■ It is knowh^that many of Chicago's . "public enemies" have been wintering in Florida. ; ■ Questioning of Zangara brought the information that he purchased the pistol three days ago with the original idea of assassinating President"Hoover. He said he read in a newspaper that Mr. Eoosevelt. was coming here, and changed his mind and decided to go after Mr. Eoosevelt: Ho insisted that no ono. had encouraged or prompted him, and he had not discussed his plans with anyone. He said he'lost more than two hundred dollars at the race tracks. ■-". - .. ' , •'.'-'