Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1889-02-27
STEALING FROM STORES.
A New York Merchants Plan to MINING
Losses by Shop-LifterS.

"A New York Merchants Plan to Minimize
Losses by Shop-Lifters.
A New York merchant believes he
has discovered method to effectually
circumvent the bothersome shop-lifter.
This is nothing more than a black lis t
containing the names and descriptions
OF habitual offenders, which is circu-
lated among the dry-goods men, en-
abling them, the New York merchant
claims, to recognize at once any of the
fraternity as soon as they enter the
store.
This is the way the scheme is ma
nipula5ed: An offender is detected in
the act of shop-lifting and taken direct
ly to the managers private Office. A
document is then produced and the
guilty one is told that she must eithe
sign 1t or suffer the alternative of arrest
and imprisonment. With no other
choice the woman succumbs to the in
evitable and signs the following:
l, the undersigned, hereby confess that upon
the 22d day Of December, IN 1888, stole hand.
kerch efs and other small articles from the dry.
articles IN my possession. I make this confess
sion with full knowledge and understanding
that It Is to be used against if everI again
set foot in the said shop.
MRS. FRANCES S. -,
Ninth street, New York City.
AS soon as the paper is signed the
offenders name, together with a
description of her appearance, is fur
nished to the general blacklist of the
merchants. When a woman, who has
been caught in this way, presents her.
self at the door of some store she is
told that they are acquainted with her,
and that it would be great deal to
her advantage to go elsewhere. In
this way, the merchant is reported as
saying, his losses from shop-lifting
during the holidays was reduced from
something like $4,000 to nearly half
that amount.
The manager of one of the leading
Chicago stores was asked by a reporter
what he thought of the scheme. He
paused a moment before replying to
issue q sharp order to a sandy-haired
urchin.
II don't think" he then said, "that
the idea is a feasible one at all. In al.
most every case of this kind false
name and address is given, and there
is no possible method of telling when
this is done. Here is an illustration oil
this that occurred only few days ago;
A handsomely-dressed woman, with a
rather faded sealskin muff, came
In and made several purchases,
which she requested should be sent
c. 0. D. to Mrs. So-and-So at a GER
tain, number on Indiana avenue. When
the goods we're sent as directed the
number and the name proved to be
fictitious, and in addition to this, on
looking over the stock that night, we
found that the woman had substituted
her worn muff for one of our finest
seal skins.
There is another serious objection
have to the scheme" continued the
manager, land that is the danger oil
mistaken identity. Strong likenesses
are found between persons who have
no relationship whatever, and when
there is nothing to go on but a descrip-
ton furnished by another person one
is apt to mistake an entirely innocent
and respectable person for the shop
litter. But while I don't think the idea
good one, yet something ought un-
doubtedly to be done, for the amount
of goods stolen in this way by shop
lifters can not be estimated. | notice
the New York man estimates his loss
at thre,e thousand dollars during the
holidays, but it is laughable to think
that all estimate can be gagged at all. "
--C Chi Mail.
Z IA very pleasant and "genteep'
way Of making q little pin money has
beaIi ffh11nd in the new feminine fad for