, 1888-04-05
TALK ABOUT CROOKS.
THEY ENTER PRISON TIME ON PROFIT
AND LOSS ACCOUNT.
The Professional Criminals Philosophy.
A Thiers I,eal Senti,nents-No Honor
Among tho Craft. Except Through No
cessity--Dying in Poverty--Nons~use.

"ThieVeS-'l mean PROFESSIONAL thieves,
criminals OF the higher grade'--said
Maj. Lawrence Harrigan, appraiser of the
port, ''pursue their crooked career with
the same feelings that honest men follow
their daily vocations. The business man
expects q certain percentage OF losses dur
ing the year, Just as ho has reason to be-
lieve that he will meet with unexpected
gains. These losses or gains are entered
up In the profit and loss account. The
professional thief or criminal philosophi-
Cally argues to himself: What ] gain
gain easily, and must be prepared to
serve n portion Of my yenrs In prison. II
1t Ia little, 80 much the better for me; IL 1t
IL much. SO much the worse for me. ~
eyes, SIR" he resumed, ''the thief
looks upon his terms in Jail or the peni-
tentiary as 80 much lost in the gaue. He
Is thief and next to devising ways and
means to acquire without labor the prop
erty that belongs to Others, his mind is
bent on devisnS ways and means to keep
out Of prison He is like man playing at
cards--he wins or loses. I recall an in
stance that illustrates what say: One
morning at about o O'Clock, after waiting
ont all night, / arrested u notorious hotel
sneak. AS soon rs j put my hands on
him he knew what he was wanted for.
There was n dead case against hinI.'an
when touched him on the shoulder and
said that the captain wanted to see him,
have no doubt that he made up his mind
to plead guilty and get off as cheaply IA
possible. 1t was IN winter, and ny we
walked together down Morgan street on
the way to the police station, we passed
an old cobbler's shop. Early as II was,
and n bitter cold morning IL was, too, ]
we'll remember the old fellow was up,
pegPine away mt his work by candle light.
The thief glanced in at the industrious
shoemaker and then said TO me:
"T have spent seven of the past twelve
years in prison. and Yet have done bet
ter than that old fellow. He works from
early morning until late mt night to yet
his bread and meat, and then he does not
live as well as | do in prison and when l
am on the outside live on the fat of the
land with plenty of good clothes, CAV
companions and everything that money
can buy | wouldn't trade places with
him him right now, and | know that I
am booked for a trip rp the road
"The fact is that all thieves are men of
appetite. They do not steal for the sake
OF stealing. They want money with which
TO crafty their passions If the passion
Is not for women-and it most always is
it is for cards or drink The thief,
when in funds, lavishes it on his woman
or leaves il at the card table. Some of
the shrewdest and most adroit thieves are
the NprleSt children the hands OF II faro
dealer. Say a thief who has often talked
about 'souaring IL, as they call reform
ing. does get several thousand dollars.
what good does il do him. Women. wine
and cards get il i'm short order. and he
must go to stealing again. These things
he must have. He won't work for his
money. so he continues to steal There
have undoubtedly been cases of reform,
and many a small town has its hotel or
man by all who know him and vet that
man has u history which he would like to
forget. A police officer Is not much of n
believer in rrformations
''These people are very honorable in their
dealings with each other are they nots''
"You mean honor among thieves
There is no such thing. Thieves make IL
virtue of necessity. They are known to
each other all over the land ANY thief
knows that il he should 'saueal' or be-
tray n brother thief he would al once be
a marked man, and that the entire fra
ternity would make IL their business to
see him Settled or, III other words CON
victed for some one of his own crimes,
and that right speedily a great deal Of
sentimental admiration is wasted over
these men who honorsbly refuse to beIray
their companions. Thieves are like any
other class uf men. They have their
friendships "A man would 20 10 cx-
tremcs to help his pal out Of trouble,
while as for another thief in whom he had
no personal interest lie would say, 'He got
into that trouble himself, let him get out
himself
"You may put il down a. rule that no
matter how successful they are, they
either die in the pepitentary or the poor
house All this stuff about thieves lead
ing double life. one of crime and the
other in good society; of their wives sup
posing that they are engaged In reputable
business, is good material for novels and
plays like "Jim, the Penmau," hut there
are no such cases The professional thief
ioos mot asnira IN uny Such lifc Hia