Daily Republican., 1879-04-28
A NOTE.
Thief Detectives.

Thief Detec tives.
Nearly every large robbery like that
o. Granville Worrell's store on Satur-
day night, shows the need of an asso-
citation of merchants for the detection
Of thieves. Had a horse been stolen
from a member of an association for the
det.ction of horse thieves, the country,
the morning after the theft, would have
been scouIei all over to find the thief.
kilograms would have been sent to the
leading cities and towns within the ra-
dius of hundred miles or more, and
detectives would have been paid out O.
fund on hand for that purpose. But
here in Wilmington a store may be
robbed Of goods to the value probably
of more than fifty horses and there is
no combination of the merchants to
catch the thieves, thinking perhaps
that the police ought to be sufficient
for all such emerg cncies. Our police
are no doubt as effective for the appre-
hension of thieves as the police or de-
tectives of any city, lut they cannot go
in quest Of thief away from home
without some little ready cash on hand
to pay their expenses at least. This is
what an association of merchants ought
to supply. By combining together aud
assessing each other a certain amount
the expenses ofpolice officers and detee-
tives could be paid while they are sent
on detective duty. 1t has happened
frequently that our police have travel,
led around in quest Of thieves, con-
siderable distance from home, paying
all their own expenses, and when they
caught them they we're never reim-
bursed for their outlay of money. Even
when private parties or the State offer
areward for the apprehension of thieves
the reward is never paid until many
months and sometimes a year or two
after the arrest, and then owing to the
wording and complicated manner of of.
fering the reward, the detective often
loses that to which he is entitled.
Our policemen at the best get very
low pay-scarcely enough to make ends
meet and keep their families, and hen
a robbery like that of Mr.. Worrell's
store takes place, it cannot be expected
even if they can be spared from the
city, that they can put their hands in
their pocket and pay horse and car
riago hire, railroad fares and hotel
bills, without some more hope of hav.
ing such expenses reimbursed than
that o, a reward, or the thieves convic,
ted if arrested. 1t takes money to
start with, and this is a scarce article
with policemen who receive small sal.
aries. An association of merchants
with small fund on hand would sup
ply this want. and render more Ger.
tain the detection of thieves. Many
thoughtless persons blame the police
for not catching more thieves than they
DO, after stores have been robbed, but
when they are robbed by thieves from
a distance or by home thieves who
may carry the goods off some distance,
they should renembe that the police
man if he has little spare cash in his
pocket, hesitates to spend it in hunting
down thieves, with only promise to
get it back again if he should happen
to catch and convict the thief. If horse
thief detective associations are benef,
cial to the farmers, We cannot see why
a merchants association for the detec-
tion of thieves may not be equally BEN
eticial anl therefore we hope to such
an organization in Wilmington before
there are more stores robbed.