The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1889-12-24
4 PHlLANTHROPIC THIEF.
Charitable Maud Curran Arrested
for Stealing.

Kansas City, Dec. 19.-There is con-
sternation to-day among the members of
the Provident association and Bureau OF
Charities over the arrest last night of one
of their supposed most faithful workers,
Maud q. Curran, a dark-haired, prepos-
sessing young woman. The charge is shop
lifting.
Miss Curran his been engaged for the
past few months in giving aid to poor per.
sons and soliciting aid for them. She
worked in conjunction with the officers
of the Provident association and Mrs A.
w. Tinsley, superintendent Of the Bureau
of Charities. She is well known ia the
Offices and store rooms down town, having
visited most of them with Mrs. Tinsley
soliciting aid for the poor. She has been
considered as doing this from prrely
philanthropic motives and was supposed
to be wealthy as she gave freely OF what
was supposed to be her own, The police
say tn { while on these visits she has been
purloining vari"u; articI,s.
| Shortly before 6 o'clock lIst evening
I Miss Curran VS. detected la the act of
stealing silk h tndkerchiei in the store uf
Bullene, Mosrr, Emery IL Co. A telephone
message was Immediately sent to the police
and an effort was M de to deiain her until
the arrival of Directive HanlOD, who was
| sent TO the siors. Just before his arrival
she man .ged to escape. She was, however,
| found on Delaware street a f~ minutes
later by HaniJn Re IUok ner back to the
store, and while in an elevator there she
quietly pulled a gold chain out of her
pocket and dropped il on the floor. Hanlon
picked it up.
Miss Curran was taken to police head.
quarters and as she had been suspected of
stealing before, Detective Hanlon went to
her home at 1920 Belyidere street and
searched the house. He found there Jew
elry of all descriptions, all kinds Of Goth
ing, fans, hsndkerchiefs and divers other
articles. He concluded that it was stolen
property and had it taken to the Central
station, where il was piled up in a heap in
the captains office. Hanlon also arrested
Miss Curran's sister, Mary. They were not
locked up, but were kept in the Office o.
the police matron during the night ander
charge Of an officer.
This morning representatives of over q
dozen drygoods and iewelry firms called |
at the police station to identify the prop
erty. A large part of it proved to be the |
property of Bullene, Moore, Emery & Co.
Others who identified some of it Were G.. |
III. Smith & Co., g. Bernheimer Bros, 4 |
Co, John TAYLOR, William T. Matthews,
and the lJsccsrd Jewelry company. The |
last mentioned firm claimed most of the |
jsweky and the gold chain which Miss |
Currsn dropped in the elevator at Bullene, |
Moore, Emery & Co.'S. There were only |
few articles that had not been claimed at |
no"D. The property recovered was valued |
at about 5000.
The young women refused positively to |
MAKE any explanation of the charges |
against them. they engaged Colonel l.. |
II. Waters TO defend them.
The Misses Curran we're visited at po-
lice headquarters this morning By Mrs. |
Cinsiey and General Manager Weaver of |
the Provident association.
They assured them of all the aid they |
could give them md sympathized with |
them very much. They told them to keep
up their spirits and they would likely get
out of trouble.
To a reporter both Mrs. Tinsley and
Weaver stated that the associations of |
which they were at the head were not
gamers by the shoplifting, and that they
had no knowledge of Miss Curran's Of
Tense until this morning. They said that
she had been an earnest worker in their
cause.
Maud Curran is q years of age and her
sister is %. They came here several years
ago from Pleasant Hill, and the sister has
for come time carried on the business of
dressmaker. Their father is said TO be
worthless character, and brother of theirs
vas shot and killed at Paola, Kan, five
years ago, by a notorious woman known
IS Mollie Black, who was sent to the peni-
tertiary for life for the ofense. They
have an uncle named Common, their
mothers brother, whose home is in Gin.
cinnati and who is said to be millionaire
he has sent them money at regular inter-
walls for years, at times sending them sums
running into thousands. They sent a
message to their mother last night to tele-
graph him to come to Kansas City.
A young man named Dreyfoos who is
employed in Smiths jewelry store, Seventh
and Main streets, to-day informed the
police that young woman underworld to
steal some gold buttons in their store re-
Gently. She was examining the buttons
and other articles under the guise of MAX
ing purchase. He observed her try to
conceal some buttons and she started away
with them, saying she would return again.
She had reached the door when he called
her back and asked about the buttons SIZE
had taken. She gave them up and said
it was q mistake He identified Maud
Curran as the young woman.
The mother Of the girls was arrested
about year ago for stealing an umbrella.
She was not prosecuted, however.
The young women were arranged before
Justice May bury shortly before noon to.
day. Charges of larceny had then beeJ
fled against them by Bullene, Moore, {
Emery & Co., w. T. Matthews and the
Jaccsrd Jewelry company. They waived
examination on the charge brought by the =,
first mentioned firm and ordered held for |
the grand jury. In this case their bonds
were fixed at $500 each, but their personal G
were taken in other cases.