The Arkansaw traveler., 1888-10-06
WOMEN WHO SMUGGLE
New York Star.

great force of character and consider able nerve to keep Uncle Sam from fairly being cheated out of his eyes by other women. Smuggling is the way the latter do it, and do it well. Wo- men like to smnggle, it would seem. They have an elastic conscience in the matter that really seems to tempt them to what is, of course, swindliDg the government, but to themselves an act of no special harm and of little consequence. Of course there is the genuine woman smuggler who knows just what she is doing, just what trouble she is liable to get into and what the result will be. It is business with her, and she considers it an ordi- nary business risk. But she is caught just as certainly as the other little wo- man is, who doesn't think it any spe- sial harm just to save little by tuck ing away few pairs of gloves which only make her shapely leg a bit plumper, if they don't slip down and give her a queer-shaped ankle, or fill ing her corset with some rare and dainty lace, that if purchased here would cost pocketful of money on account of the duty.
 "lt's such awfully jolly good fun," said very pretty girl recently, "to stu1 little articles away in your - well," with deep blush, anywhere where they won't be apt to look if they don't suspect you, and then to watch those horrid women from the inspectors office manl and paw over every thing in your luggage and then not find any thing, because it'son you." The fair inspectresses deserve praise for the great work that they do, for there is absolutely nothing more slip pery than woman smuggler. There are more of the latter than among the men. Out of the entire seizures il a year the larger proportion will be from females. Last year more than $25, 1000 was saved to the government as result of the examination of wo- men passengers luggage. Women are far more wary than men in smuggling, and their devices for bringing in goods of a dutiable nature are many. It is usually the case that the inspectress can tell by the face and contour of the person. As general rule, the woman who has goods hid away will look the searcher of her baggage calmly in the face, seldom turning away, and if the searcher politely informs her that she thinks that she has dutiable goods on her person she will, of course, be .rao<lv inoul<oI aud invite o an ~of.,l examination. She gets it-and little trouble in the bargain.
 The self-assurance that woman smuggler has is of such great quantity that it will lead her to do the most absurd and foolhardy deeds, whereas, if she had less, perhaps she would not rely 30 much upon it's carrying her through, and would, therefore, be more careful. The hustle is a godsend to the woman who wants to smuggle. They are made large and roomy, are of iron framework, and in them may be safely carried yards of the most valuable goods.
 The most absurd thing for woman to do who has goods hid about her person is to wear heavy ulster when it is too warm for one. She will have to refuse to remove it when graciously asked if it is not bit warm, and such refusal of course results in necessary investigation on the part of the in- spectress. The manners of the woman smuggler are always very charming, and therefore it is in such a kindly way that they inform the tired in- spectress that she is really tired and needs little rest, therefore need not examine their trunks, as they will tell the inspectress what is in them and and save her so much extra trouble. But she doesn't look at it in that light, and does inspect the trunks, much to the regret of the owner. These smug- glers possess 8 quiet and careless air, but the inspectress can always tell them by the way they attempt to sit down. Their bodies then have a stiff ness that is hardly in keeping with the manner in which thcy carry the head and arms, and of course they are im- mediately suspected of having goods concealed somewhere about their skirts. There are many curious places of concealment, and it can hardly be improbable that many thousand dol lars' worth of dutiable goods are brought through by smart tricks. For instance, diamonds and other precious jewels have been brought over and fastened in the front and in the plumes of the bonnet. They arc generally wrapped in black cotton, and securely fastened in such . manner that 1t would be necessary to take the hat apart to ind them. The heel of the shoe is another queer but secure place wherc jswels have been carried. Tho heel is hlse, having hollow place in tho cen- ter, where, packed in cotton, the gems rest safsly.
 Sometimes woman is found with lAce wrapped around her form. Yard