Smyrna times., 1878-11-13
A Lady Seareher's Story.


who is employed as a searcher in the Gus,
tom House.
Madam, you knew something of the |
tricks of smugglers, do you not?" said the |
reporter.
"Yes, and especially female smugglers,
who, must say, carry on their netarious
business with the most charming elfroutery.
Of course, there are petty smugglers of
both sexes, but for cunning, bOldness and
determination, the women cannot be ap-
preached. Do you know that women are
born cheats? Oh, we'll, mean in this drec-
ton. A wOman's dress affords her more
facilities for hiding small but costly articles,
and it is far less easy to detect them than
men, and almost impossible to 'circum-
vent them as the elder Weller would say,
when they set their wits to work 1t takes
an experienced searcher to say whether a
woman has got anything concealed about
her, and as we cannot search everybody,
some of the clever ones manage to get
through without detection.
"Some very funny instances have come
under my observation. | once searched
young lady, thin-faced delicate creature,
and my reason for doing so was that she
appeared rather abnormally developed
above the waist. Well, | found in the
lining of her cOrsets, quantity of jewelry,
valued at several thousand dollars. She
was evidently new hand at the business,
and was quite amazed when we informed
her that the jewelry must be coniscated to
the uses of the Government.
Eyes, quite number of lady searchers
| are employed by the Custom House au.
thorities. When party is suspected she
is taken into private apartment and then
carefully stripped, garment after garment !;
even her boots and stockings are removed
and her underclothing examined vigorously.
| This is done despite the most affecting
protestation on the part of the victim. 1t
very often happens that a lady will pass
| the stripping ordeal successfully. Nothing
is found on her, and the searcher is afraid
a mistake has been made, but a lucky trip
OF the corsets, dress or pantalettes brings to
light glittering mass Of carefully con-
cealed precious stones or costly laces."
81 suppose" said the reporter, "the
lady searchers have to drop all sentimentin
making their searches"
"Why, certainly. We are the most mat
ter of fact women in the world. These
female smugglers imagine that their sex
will protect them from a personal examina
ton. An amusing instance of this come:
to my mind. One of the lady passengers
was detained by the authorities, on infor
nation received. A stout, elderly y-lookinl
female, who had been her companion dur
ing the voyage, accompanied her to the
search.room. The stout lady was loud il
her denunciatiOns, and threatened all sort
of vengeance on the bold, bad men wht
were giving her friend so much trouble
But the searchers found on the suspected
person a large quantity of fine laces ant
several cut diamonds. Now, here's tn
joke. When the old lady and her friend
were about leaving the room, one of tn
lynx-eyed searchers noticed somethin
peculiar about the hang of the unsearche,
women's dress. In an instant we kne1
something was wrong. We lifted tn
skirts of this respectable old party, Will
both women shrieked. Now, hangin
round this woman's dress, securely tie
with tape, were some highly valuable vic
lions, which are subject to a heavy duty.
81 remember another case that of
middle-aged woman, who aroused my SUI
picion by Jet black hair. You see her fac
was wrinkled, and | thought it strange sh
should have such fine hair. | politely il
timated my desire to search her, and con
menced by exploring the mysteries of thu
. beautiful hair. Why it was wig, so skill
fully constructed that the chignon col
cealed a number of precious stones.
this discovery we decided to make full'
examination, and were amply awarded f
our trouble.
"An old trick of female smuggers is
have rare jewels and laces sewn in folC
about various parts of their dresses an
underskrts. | once seized some fiji
Lyons velvet done up in this way. Som
= times | find precious stones lightly covert
a with cotton and secreted in the bosoms
these ladies, l saw one searched who W
" completely enveloped in lace, wound abo
her person, lace of such cobweb textu
that roll of three yards of it could
passed through a small lingering
In the days when wide hoop-skirts we
in vogue l saw a slightly. built lady waikiki
as / thought rather heavily, and felt su
she required my services in relieving her
some dutiable articles. | found hangi
from each wire on the inside of the skirt
selection of valuable gold watches, in ia
quite an invoice of time-keepers. | fou
out afterward that the lady was not pl
fessonal smuggler, but that these watch
were for friends who had personally solicit
her to get them an English watch. s
looked very much confused when detectC
and innocently asked whether we could
=. allow her to have the watches, because
'-u friends would be disappointed.
In conversation with shrewd spec
agent the writer learned that great d
,x Of smuggling is done in quiet way by ma
W. officers. OF course these gentlemen bri
srn "presents for their mothers, wives a
gas, sweet. hearts," but the goods are genera
eat eat too costly and rare to admit this expla
iciss tion, and notwithstandings ngstringentr rulesa
6m strict watch the game goes on.
$500 "Oh, yes," said passenger to an agt
for recently, "Ihave some new clothes" "H
ith manyP' "Oh, about five suits, three g
be hats, l think, and two opera hats wa
III