Honor Before Fame in Capone's Chicago

 Chicago's past is rich with intriguing characters, such as Prohibition-era mobster Al Capone. And don't forget Capone's lawyer, "Easy Eddie." After all, it was Eddie's astute legal maneuvering that kept Big Al out of jail. In return, Capone rewarded Easy Eddie handsomely.

Life as an accomplice of Al Capone meant nice clothes, big houses, fast cars, and notoriety. Everybody knew Eddie, and he enjoyed living like a mobster. But if Eddie had one soft spot, it was his son.  And while he could shower his only son with material possessions, Eddie felt powerless to pass on the integrity of a good name.

Ultimately, Eddie was determined to clean up his tarnished family name by testifying against the mobsters. He knew the cost could be great, but this was his gift to his son. Eddie's testimony resulted in a conviction and jail time for Al Capone. One week before Capone's release from Alcatraz, Easy Eddie was gunned down in a hail of bullets at a lonely Chicago intersection.

Those same Chicago streets spawned a hero of the Second World War: Lt. Commander. E. H. Butch O'Hare. He was a fighter pilot assigned to the carrier Lexington. One day Butch was forced to return from a mission because of low fuel. That's when his plane was unexpectedly the only defense between the American fleet and a fast-approaching squadron of Japanese fighter-bombers. Laying aside personal safety, Butch dove into the surprised enemy formation, scattering those he didn't succeed in shooting down. Thus, Butch became the first Navy "ace" of the war and the first naval aviator to win the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Butch O'Hare climbed into his cockpit many more times, and ultimately died in aerial combat. But Chicago never forgot this native son. Think of him the next time you fly through O'Hare International Airport, for it is his namesake.

And there's one more thing: Butch's selfless integrity in wartime came at least partly from the reformed character of his late father, Easy Eddie O'Hare.

Green Mountain Boys Get Last Laugh
His larger-than-life statue stands under the Capital dome, shoulder to shoulder with America's Founding Fathers. Yet some claim Ethan Allen's first allegiance was to the state he created, even if that meant his state must join British Canada -- or the fledging United States --  or remain forever separate as the Republic of Vermont.

Never one of the original 13 colonies, Ethan Allen's Vermont was claimed by, and heavily taxed by, both New York and New Hampshire. This jeopardized the vast holdings of Ethan Allen, who found a way to legitimize his property deeds by both the pen and the sword.

Following America's Declaration of Independence, Vermonters gathered at a tavern in Windsor to make a similar declaration. The resulting Constitution of the Republic of Vermont went far beyond the U.S. Constitution in guaranteeing personal freedoms. It was the first constitution in the New World to prohibit slavery, guarantee male voting rights regardless of race, religon or property ownership, and promise a free education to both genders.

For 14 years, the nascent Republic of Vermont issued currency, operated a postal system, saluted a national flag and maintained a standing army famously known as the Green Mountain Boys. Early in the American Revolution, Colonel Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys capturing Fort Ticonderoga from the British. The cannon and powder Allen commandeered were later used by Washington to drive the British out of Boston.

Military valor earned a certain status for Allen and Vermont, yet Vermont's petition to join the new union of states was repeatedly blocked by New York State. "Vermont is, after all, part of New York", proclaimed New York Governor George Clinton, who later put a bounty on Ethan Allen's head.

A frustrated Ethan Allen began secret negotiations with the British to preserve Vermont sovereignty, or alternately to gain admission to British Canada. Was this a ploy to coax Congress into annexing Vermont? Allen's negotiations would bring accusations of treason.

Many years later, Vermont joined the United States as the 14th state, but only after powerful New York dropped its earlier objections. The reason?  New Yorkers determined that when the next Congress convened, abolitionist Vermont would counterbalance the anticipated admission of Kentucky, a slave state.

Sadly, Ethan Allen died before Vermont's admission to the Union. Historians agree: Allen was rather calculating in his defense of Vermont and his own interests. But those who say he was a mere fair weather patriot might consider this story, often told by Abraham Lincoln and attributed by him to Ethan Allen:

During a post-war visit to England, Allen's hosts entertained him cordially. But they also repeatedly ridiculed Americans, whom they still considered wayward colonists. To further annoy Allen, his hosts hung a portrait of Washington on the outhouse wall. When teasingly asked his thoughts on the picture's placement, Ethan Allen calmly retorted,"It is most appropriately hung. There is nothing that will make an Englishman shit so quick as the sight of General Washington."