Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1888-05-10
NIMBLE- FINGERED lien.
How the ArtfUl Dodgers Get Their
Start in Life.
q Talk With Detective About Prores-
sional Pickpockets-The Various De-
:grecs Of ESpertness-Tricks to
Which They Resort.

WHICH hHeS lsSsort'
Glow do professional pickpocllet:
make a start?" asked a Star reporter
of Il detective the other day.
-'ne begins" answered the detective,
''by robbiug small stores or candy
shops; 5y sneaking into the stores and
robbing. or attempting to rob, the till.
Before he becomes an expert he is
usually picked up by the officers for
petty of,enseS. The first time he is ar
rested he probably gets off by paying a
small fine. The next time he is sent TO
Jail. and then he becomes hardened.
While in prison his associates, or many
of thein, are old offenders, and from
ahcm he receives advice and learns q
great deal about professional work.
When he is released from jail he thinks
he knows as much as any of the older
members of the profession. and he .hen
makes start toward the penitcntiarv.
Then he will follow ladies about. He
will pick out those who carclessly carry
their purses in their outer pockets or
oD their arms.
In short time" the detective went
on, che joins gang or mob Those
gangs usually are composed of four
or five men known rs stalls and
wires or tools. The 'stall' is the
man who gets the mark or victim in
position He is usually the heaviest
man in the gang When his work is
finished and the victim is in position
the wire comes along and works from
behind the vic:im or the stall In
sinetr-nine cases out of every hundred
where the victim discovers that he has
sSecn robbed he seiLes the stall and
hands him over to the police. OF course
when the stall is searched nothing is
found on him. for he has never had the
-swag' in his possession. The victim
grabs the stall because he can not
see the wire After the robbery is
committed the proceeds are turned over
TO a confederate, who goes TO conven-
lent place. cleans or empties the purse
and then disposes of it. keeping only
sneh portions of its contents as can not
DE easily identified. A favorite thing
with the pickpockets is to take a gang
Gf five or six and start out on the dav
of some celebrationto to 90 through street
cars. Two of them will enter n ear at
:. designated point and pick out a
mark. Then as the car passes along
the street the others enter it. and the
first two give the signal and step off the
car. When the mark attempts to get
of the car he is hustled at the door by
members of the gang while the wire
goes through him. If they have a
chance several pocket-books are secured
before they leave the car. and in this
way they frequently make good haul
Another favorite place for a mob to
work" continued the detective, ISIS at
a railroad junction. A swell mob of
firstclass men viii meet. lay their plans
and then 60 to the junction. Each will
go alone and take his position. When
the ear arrives a rush is made, and pas
seugers are prevented for a minute or
two from getting of the car. While
pressing past each other the wire gets
in his work, and when the car on the
crossing road moves off one or more of
its passengers discover the loss of
pocket-book. The man who got it is on
\ car going in another direction. and
the chances for catching him are very
slim. Some first-class workers prefer
to travel alone, and work with a news
paper or light overcoat. They will
carry an .evercoat on their left arm.
and, when doing. job, will throw it
across their right arm. hiding their
hand. These fellows can easily take
prop as a pin is sometimes called.
Such 4 job takes but an instant, and in
very few cases are the thieves caught.
The pickpocket," continued the de-
tective. lis in his glory at the country
fair. There Is usually large crowd at
such places. A member of the mob |
will get into the crowd and cry: Look |
out for your poclet-booksr In an in |
slant every countryman has his hand |
on his pocket-book. This gives the
mob a chance to locate the pocket
books, and saves them the time and |
trouble of tanning or feeling about to |
locate them. If an attempt is made to |
get the pocket-book and the pocket. as
countrymen have them, is too deep. |
one of the gang will either accidentally
knock the intended victims hat off or
pull It down over his ears. In either
case he is surprised, and while recover
ing himself his money is taken. He
calls thief. but not being able to pick
out the right man from the crowd, and
fearing that hewiil pick the wrong one.
he walks quietly away, and afterward
looks 70 the Fair Committee for his
money.
.Iremember. continued the detect
i've, .fhat at q country fair country