The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-11-24
How Thieves Divide.

well known ex-detective, THAT 1 had
$4,000 worth of diamonds and other
jewelry stolen from my house, how
much would have to pay the thieves
or their middle-men to get the property
back?"
"Well. there are many things con-
nected with the business which might
suggest many different answers"
"What businessp"
''The business of thieving, for it is a
business and has several grades. For
instance: The men who robbed Alex
ander Lewis and David Whitney were
not the men who did the Rolshoven
work. The perpetrators of that lob
consider themselves several degrees
above 'porch-climbers' who rob dwell
ling houses, and would not even recog-
n1ze them on the streets, or elsewhere
GLOW do you know all this?''
81 do not absolutely know the facts
in the instances cited, but [ form nv
conclusion on my knowledge of thieves
of all classes, and their code of ethics.
safe-breaker is an aristocrat when he
meets porch climber, and in fact they
strive to avoid meeting or associating
with persons any lower in thiefdom
than themselves.
"Now to return to the question of
returning stolen property for reward
and no questions asked-What do you
know of the methodist"
sin the first place, nine out of ten of
the safe-blowing jobs are put up by
persons living in the town where the
work is done. They size up the enter
prise and send for some one to do the
trick who is particularly good at that
kind of work. That some one comes
from abroad generally. Thus, it fol-
lows, that there are four persons or
gangs of persons who know just who
does job as quickly as the news comes
that it has been done"
"And who are the persons thus in
formed?"
''First, the person or persons who
put up the job; second, the fence
who receives the property; third, the
thieves who do the work, and fourth,
the associates of the thieves who live
in the town they hail from and who
know that they left home to do work
Now then all of these parties watch the
papers and use every means to keep
posted in relation to each job, and the
minute any reward is offered or any
settlement made, they clamor for their
'whack' and generally get it."
''But suppose thief leaves Chicago,
Toledo or Cleveland to do job in De-
troit; how do his associates know where
he has gone or what he does?'
Because they know the thief is out
of town and they know the kind of work
he does and his methods of working"
81 see. Now how much would a
thief get on 5000 worth of plunder?"
"From forty to fifty per cent of the
total valuation. You see it's this way:
The party who puts up the job steers
the. thief to a fence Well say the
fence whacks up half-and-half with
the thief. Then the person who pats
up the job calls on the fence for dizzy
OF fifteen or twenty per cent. of his fifty
per cent, and on the thief for a like
share of his half
The statement being triAe compli-
Gated the detective prepared the follow
table illustrating the point:
Value of property stolen. ...............$5,00 900
Share received by fence. $500
Commission paid by fence" 500
Commission paid by thief ................ 500
Reward received by party who puts up"
the Job Observation-Disclosures. 1000
Profit realized by Fence" ..........:..... 2,0OS
Profit realized by thief. ................. 1900
Then, to satisfy the thief, provided 1
wanted to recover my property by pay
ing a reward, / should be obliged to
give him the $4,000 he d realize on a
$4,000 haul ?'
"Oh dear, no, You would be obliged
to pay fees to all the parties | have
mentioned. They are all in the Job
and must have their 'whack' just the
same whether they restore the property
to you for reward or whether they
dispose of it to a fence. There would
be this difference Considering the
safety that would follow all concerned
by restoring the property to you and no
questions asked, the 'putter up of the
Job, the thief and the fence would con-
sent to smaller profits. Accordingly on
$4,000 worth of property stolen, you
would be obliged to pay 81, 000to $1,000
to get ii back"
"But, hold on ~ you've left out the
whack clamored for by the associates of
the thieves at his own home"
"That the thief is obliged to settle for
after he returns to his home, and if he
fails or refuses to do the square thing,
then some one 'squeals' to our police,
an officer picks up the sqealer and some
timeswor out the kick to conviction.
But there is sometimes trouble there, for
man who will blow on partner
will settle with that partner on the
shortest notice, leaving the officer en-
tirely at sea and without witnesses or ev-
idence."
"It's asort of dog eat dog occupation
which thieves engage in, isn't it ?"
at certainly is, and in the long run
every dog becomes food for some other
dog. "-Detroi Free Press.
Hard Case.
A curious case, in which an English
man is concerned, is pending before
the courts at Lausanne. A dog began
to chase a cat; the cat fled down an air.
shaft LEADING from the street into q