Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1884-08-09
Distinguished ShOplifterS.

To hear talk of the wives of army of
ficers, heads OF government bureaus, or
even congressman being caught at shop
lifting is quite astonishing, not to say
painful. Yet the storekeepers of Wash
ington tell me stories in this line which
are very curious, to say the least. There
are women in the very highest walks of
life in this city said one of them recent
y. "who are practical shoplfters. They
say it is a disease when they are caught,
but | don't believe that. One woman
caught stealing some lace, however,
swore that it was an atflicton that she
could not control, and offered to bring her
family physician TO prove it. But | don't
put any faith in it. They have propen-
sity 10 steal, and they do it rather than buy
Some of these women are from the first
families in the city; have wealth, and
would pay out almost any amount of
money 10 avoid exposure. yet they will
steal. and we have to forbid them the
store. Some OF them are very clever
thieves. Then, too, we get to know their
ways 50 well that we recognize them very
readily. When a woman is very ioqua
cious and affable, and keeps her eyes
watChfully on yours while talking, avert
luE tlItu OCCASIONALLY 10 TAKE Il nasty
glauce at the articles about her, she's a
| person to be watched. 1t don't make anv
difference how handsomely she's dressed.
or who's wife she is. we have to keep an
eye on her.
"Of coure we never let them know
we suspect them, but it's seldom they
get away with anything when once we've
marked them thus. When we once
catch them we generally take them
up stairs and search them, and hav-
ing settled the thing upon them, we make
them pay for what they took and warn
them never to come in the store again
suppose there are great many whom we
never catch. But our girls are trained to
be quick and clever. and they are not apt
to let anyone, get ahead of them. A very
stvlishly-dressed lady-the wife of an
army officeS-came in here the other day
she had every mark of lady about
/ her. and was the last person in the world
YOU would suspect of being shop-ifter
| But she had not been IN the store long
| looking over a pile of fine collars, when a
| girl gave me sign, and told me that A
customer had something in her pocket that
she had not bought Before we could Sc
cure her she got out of the store but we
/ followed her close without attracting her
attention, and she went into the store next
door, and, taking the collar out OF her
pocket pretended she wanted to match it.
then asked the clerk to wrap it up. Just
| then she was told that she was wanted in
here, and she returned without protest,
but before doing so she slipped the collar
over To her maid. who was accompanying
| her. They were both brought in here.
/ and she paid for the collar. after receiving
a lecture, and being warned not to come
into the store again. She is woman of
high social position, but is probably pretty
well known By the merchants in the city
/ by this time. There are any number of
( just such cases, though. of course, the
majority of shoplitters are professionals.
One woman. who is pretty well known to
Us now (she lives in fine housed stole a
pair of stockings. The sales girl saw her
tuck them mp under her basque. and in
vited her up stairs, and on the way she
tried to throw them away. There are lots
of these cases.