The Princeton union., 1880-06-24
shoplifter,sl..

8 Weestimate our losses from shop \,
lifting at $40, 900 a year, s said one Of the
proprietors 81 large East Side dry
goods and fancy-goods store yesterday.
s In the busy hours you cannot estimate
the number 81 people that come to this
store. If you watch them. from the gal
leries they swarm like ants. To serve
them we employ between 800 and ], 900
persons. We have to watch them al,
customers and clerks alike. On the
other hand, it is prime necessity to
display our goods, and to display them
IN such way as to tempt the dishonest.
6 Shop girls are burdened with q rep
utation they dom deserve, and ] hate to
say anything against then, !" continued
the shopkeeper, " for there are girls
working for us who bend their necks to
the yoke and labor only from necessity,
and whose every instinct and action IS
that Of q lady. But some Of the girls
formed ring with outsiders, and we
discovered them selling the best goods
and sending up checks for 9 nominal
figure, 25 or 80 cents, when the real price
might have been as many dollars. We
get information against the girls some 4
times from customers. For instance,
the last case was that Of q person who
wrote that such and d-such q looking girl,
at such -and-such counter, was seen to
drop bill on the floor and send up
check for just so much less than. the real
price. Whenever our attention is di-
rected against employees we generally
catch them"
aDo the cash boys steal?' he was
asked.
I'VE lose a great deal by boys, both
in our employ and from outside. You'd
be astonished if you knew the number
Of the sons Of respectable people often
little boys-that we catch stealing.
Among our cash boys there have been
some very ingenious thieves. One 1T
tie fellow tore leaves out Of his cash
book SO nicely that it was not discovered
by the cashier, although it might have
been that night. We suspected him,
and took him into private office, where
we talked to him earnestly. He admit
ted his guilt, and said that he had put
the money in his shoe. There we found
over $14, the stealings Of only a few
hours. But there was smarter boys,
although suspect he had adult accom-
plices outside. He carried on his per-
son q little pad soaked with printers
ink, and an exact fac-simile of the cash
ier's stamp cut on the end Of cock.
Whenever he got the exact price Of an
article sold from the saleswoman he
went away and stamped his cash book,
and brought it back as it from the
cashiers desk"
edo you cause the arrest Of many
shoplifters ?" the tradesman was asked.
Yes, good many, but not al, by
any means. We don't disturb persons
unless we have the most positive proof
Of their guilt. When the article stolen
is a trife we watch the woman SO as to
remember her face, but usually do moth
ing more. Not infrequently we see
thefts committed by women that we be
leve are not habitual trespassers, but
were urged on by too strong temptation
and poverty Such women we take to {
private room We tell them our sus
picion. If they confess and give us
/. what proves to be their right names an6
addresses we let them 60 But all this
. is very delicate matter, and to make {
mistake is very dangerous. You mus
know that shop-lifters are generally
among the best dressed and most re
. spectacle looking women that come II
our store. ] stood at the second-storJ
skylight one day looking aimlessly dow1
on the first floor. I saw two elegantly
dressed women putting away rolls o
silk ribbon. I watched them, and there
wasn't any doubt about it. I hastenee
down and told the foor-walker. HI
!. was astonished. I persisted, and hi
spoke to the women. They were VIC
lently indignant As they walked toward
the door we saw them throw the rolls O
ribbon among some boxes between twt
:: counters. We had them followed. The,
lived in an elegant brown stone house OF
Forty-eight street. "-NeaO York Sun.