Originally published: Gem of the prairie. New York : A.A. Knopf, 1940

Discover how Chicago's underworld earned-- and kept-- its reputation. Asbury reveals live as it was lived in the Criminal districts of the Levee, Hell's Half-Acre, the Bad Lands, and the Black Hole. His description of Chicago infamous red light district vividly captures the wicked splendor that was Chicago

Evolution of Slab Town -- "First the blade ..." -- "We are beset on every side" -- "The withered rose levees of society" -- "There's a sucker born every minute" -- Monster of Sixty-Third Street -- "A reign of terror is upon the city" -- Scarlet sisters and their times -- Fight against the levee -- Big shots -- Bibliography -- Index