Eaton weekly Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1866-1875, 1870-09-22
The Secret Of Pocket Picking.

AsHoRT time since, while our reporter
was visiting a town in the interior, he
made the acquaintance of a well-to-do
farmer, who, after making some inquiries
in regard to the growth and prosperity of
Detroit inquired if there. were any pick
pockets in the city. The reply was Of
course in the affirmative. The farmer
laughed quietly a moment, and then
said:
"I don't often tell my first experience
in seeing the lions of your city, but I am
not as sensitive over it now as 1 used to
be and Pn tell you about it. Some years
before my father died he went to New
York city on business, and while there he
bought himself a gold watch. He wore it
as long as he lived, and when he died., q
few years ago, it came to me. OF course
i was strongly attached to the watch, and
not q little proud of it, especially when /
put it in my pocket upon the occasion of
my first visit to Detroit. / haven't any
doubt that I looked at it q hundred times
q day, and you will not be at all surprised
when I tell you that I had moi been in the
city two hours before twas missing, chain
and all.
81 informed the clerk of the hotel where
] was stopping of my loss, and as I did not
remember of being jostled by any one and
could give mo clue to the thief he said
there was no use in calling in an
officer. He advised me to offer
q large reward for the return of
the watch and add that no questions
would be asked. / then put such an adver-
tisement in the morning papers, and dur
ing the afternoon received q note inform
ing me that if I would be at the corner of
B. and L streets that evening
at seven o'clock with the reward ($100)
my watch would be returned to me. The
note also stated that I must come alone,
and if during the day / made any attempt
to inform an officer the writer would not
meet me. That I would be watched all
the time, and the only way that I could
recover my watch was by doing precisely
asI advertised goff-a4 So Gg.
: s"At seven o'clock I was at the spot in
Dictated, and after waiting a few moments
arwell-dressed man in passing me asked
me the time Of day. I replied that it was
seven O'Clock. Atthat he askedme to wall
along with him q short distance, and as we
walked he inquired If ] q brought the
500. replied in the affirmative, when
he handed me my watch, received the
money, and was about toleave me, when
I stopped him, and told him / would give
him $40 more to tell me how he managed
to pick my pocket. f,tcu f-1y.istief
"tOhp said he, placing his finger on
his lips 'you promised to ask no quesf
tions, but I would show you if it wasn't
1OI buhb mdA SCduQ1uS oyer batI0 Ou Inc
corner. He is a detective officer and
knows me, and the man pointed across
the street. r,.s ,a
81 looked in the direction he had indi-
Gated, but could see no one that looked
like an officer, though there were plenty
of people standing in that locality. That
tall follow with tho sbOY1.PiPe hat is the
one I mean; but I must be of. Good
bye 7s4a
man hurried off and 7 saw him
disappear round the corner; then ! again
tried to see the tall fellow. with the stove
pipe hat butiif he had been thereihe had
disappeared, and I started for the hotel
happy in again possessing my fathers last
present to me. At this thought I put my
hand upon my vest pocket where I had
placed the watch q momentsbefore, and
the next instant you could have knocked
me down with q straw, for the pocket
was empty. The thief had indeed COM
piled with my request, and shown me
how it was DONE I didn't advertise for
it again, and ! came homo without telling
the hotel clerk about that evenings ex-
perience."-Dstr0it Post.