, 1890-05-02
a sHooLlFTeR's EXPERIENCES.
Three Incidents from the Life of a skiiIrui
Female Thief.

Three Incidents from the Life of a Skiilful
Female Thief.
From n curious source two or three in
cidenta in the life of a professional thief
may be set down here. They might be
termed confessions OF a shoplifter.
Storesin both Allegheny and Pittsburg
have suffered by the depredations of a
remarkably skillful thief, who is awoman.
She prides herself on her skill in shop
lifting, and it is from her mouth that the
following narrative originally came:
Once she visited n large store in Allie
ghcny and asked to be shown some ex-
pensive cloaks. The goods were brought
out and tho stylish looking shopper took
off the jacket she wore and tried on a
cloak. She was not entirely satisfied
with it, she said, and the saleswoman
who was waiting upon her went off to
another part of the store to get some
more cloaks. This was the thiefs chance
She walked away. leaving her jacket as
a token of her regard. On the stairs
the cloak department was on the second
door-she met one of the owners of the
store.
Have you been waited upon?" he
asked politely.
"Yes, thank you, and l am very well
satisfied with this cloak, she replied, and
sailed on. She escaped.
Another time she visited n shoe store
in Pittsburg. She had a small foot and
was proud of it. 1t was no easy matter
to please her, the affable young salesman
found. The stock of fine ladies' shoes
was ransacked to suit her taste. 1t was
all in vain, for she departed without
buying anything. Under her dress were
two more shoes than a woman can wear,
however.
When she looked at the stolen shoes
after returning home she found that they
were not mates. She was very much
annoyed; in fact, the discovery took
away her appetite for supper.
Tn next afternoon found her in the
shoe store again. The shoes you sold
me the other day" she said to the sales
man, who was not the one who had tried
to suit her f%astidious taste the day before,
ARE not mates, and will you kindly
change them:"
The store vas crowded-shoplifters
seldom venture into an empty store-and
the young man hurried off at once with
out further inquiry. In another minute
lie returned with a pair of shoes proper
ly mated and gave them TO the supposed
customer. She did not stay to give
thanks for the gift.
Once only did her confidence, some
would call it impudence, desert her.
She visited n store one morning with
the intention of appropriating some os-
trich plumes As usual, she wa very
particular about the quality of the feath-
ers; she would look at none costing less
than SO or 81 apiece. But al hough the
best feathers in the store were brought
out for her inspection, she found none
that was long enough, heavy enough or
black enough to suit her. She apologized
sweetly to the young woman behind the
counter for the trouble she had given
her, and promised to call again when the
new consignment-which, of course, was
coming next week-should arrive.
As she vas leaving the store she be-
came aware that she had dropped some
thing, and she looked behind her. A
fine ostrich feather lay on the floor; it
had slipped from under the cloak where
the thief had concealed it, or to be more
precise, it had not gone into the deep
pocket in the cloak specially designed for
its reception.
She hesitated for a second. 10th to
leave her prey, and yet afraid TO stoop
down and take it, Her assurance was
not great enough to carry her through
the second theft, and she left the store.
The feather was not noticed till she had
gone.-Pittsburg Dispatch.