The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1872-02-23
Polite Thieves.


If you have any curiosity OH the sub
ject step into dry goods store and ask
the merchant or a clerk, ''Do thieves
ever come in here ~ Nine times out of
ten he will answer, "Why, yes; that's
our greatest trouble" SO a merchant
answered our reporter Saturday, and
then proceeded to explain what he
meant. In law there are only two grades
of thieves-the big thieves and the petty
larceny ones. Outside of law there are
several grades of thieves, and the worst
ones to guard against are the criminals
with white fingers, the ones who ''shOp'
for two hours without purchasing fifty
cents worth of goods.
Take an instance which occurred in
/ woodward avenue store last Thursday,
\ lady called in and asked to be shown
some velvets and some laees, and the
gentlemanly and Obliging clerk soon
/ laid Il large stock before her. She turned
over the goods, held them up to the
/ light, viewed them over and over, and
/ finally wellt away without making any
/ purchases. She had scarcely closed the
door when a cash boy informed the clerk
| that he saw the lady pocket two pieces
of velvet trimming and n lace collar,
and an examination showed that he was
right. But the matter ended right
there, or it went no further than to re-
I port the occurrence to the proprietor.
! He had n hundred reasons why he
should not arrest the lady, or charge
her with the theft, the most prominent
being that she was regular arcustOmera at
the store, sometimes buying a bill OF
goods amounting to two or three hun
dred dollars.
1t is a fact, of which all people are
aware, that merchants and their clerks
are invariably on the watch to detect
these ''kleptOmaniacs;" but an arrest
seldom follows a detection, nor is there
a word to give the thief a suspicion that
she has been discovered. Suppose that
n lady sits down to the counter and has
the space before her piled up with valu-
able notions she has asked to see. BE
she ever so sly, she can seldom pocket
an article without some one seeing her.
But no one says a word, and she goes
out, feeling that she has escaped with
her booty without any one being the
wiser. Next time she comes in the
clerk will be just as polite and just rs
prompt, but she will find that he does
not hand the goods down rs before,
merely handing down one box or one
article at a time, and, il convenient, an
other clerk will stand near him and give
the lady to understand that he mas
nothing to do but keep watch of her.
but vet she doubts if they suspect the
former theft, and so is too prudent tC
commit another ofiense. \ few days
ago a merchant, standing ut his desk
saw woman roll up two costly lace
wells and secretly work them under hel
cloak, having called the clerks atten
ton to the top shelves for mOmen
.. I. IL OF I.u A o.
chant knew her well As a good customer
but vet did not want TO lose the costly
. property. Therefore, when she had fin
ished her trading, he approached he
and insisted that she should take lOOl
: at some new dress goods, and after tina
. some cloakings, and then finally asket
, her opinion of some cloaks ready-made
and lie thus kept the victim in the stOr
for an hour, meanwhile giving the his
} tory of a clerk who had been discharged
: from the store a short time before 70
stealing goods. eve always detec
every theft, no matter how small" h,
added, and then excused himself ant
returned to the desk. The lady wen
{ back to pile of dress goods, haulet
, them over II little, and then departed
The merchant went to the pile and foun'
: the two wells crushed in between some o
AAlt bollS VI tiblAl-
The easiest thing in a store to steal i
pair of gloves. A lady is not cOnten
with seeing ten pairs, and sometime
not with seeing fifty. She must hav
e the whole stock down, and with her Ow
: gloves pulled down off the hand to tn
I finger joints, she has thus two littl
: pockets where she can stow away pal
/ of gloves.
/ Not long ago, after a merchant ha
e borne for whole year with the appr'
y priations of certain woman, he dete
: mined to frighten her out of making an
u more thefts in his store. She came in,
Il clerk began waiting on her, when IL
q merchant crossed over to the clerk al
/ said, in her hearing, "Harry, L hay
u reason to believe that one of the ladi,
u back there is 4 thief, and is here to re
a us. I wish you would step up to Il
II City Hall and ask the Chief of Police
/ send down a detective.n
II He made a splendid hit. She was :
i frightened at the idea of his having SUI
II picioned any lady that she purchased $
Y worth of goods to avoid suspicion, ht
Il general purchasing never going above
: few shillings before.-DetrOHE Free Pres