Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1890-03-07
WHO THE SHOPLIFTERS ARE.

You would be surprised if you could
see some of the women whose names are
in this book" continued the manager.
1T is my experience of many years that
the bulk of the shoplifting is done by hon
| est thieves-by women who are supposed
| to be respectable. The professional thieves
| do not operate very much in shops. and if
| they do it is in the pockets of customers,
not on the counters. There is a very pa
thetic side to shoplifting sometimes, espe-
| cially at the beginning of winter. Mothers
steal for their children. There have been
some heartrending scenes in this Office
when women have been arrested and
brought In here and their booty-a pair of
baby socks, some warm fiannels or little
coatS-taken from them.
What do you do in such cases ?"
eve let them go on with an admonl-
ton. It's the women who steal ribbons,
laces, feathers and what not for their own
adOrnment that we send up.
Here trim brunette entered the room
Miss Hannah Fleischaur, who may be-
come as successful detective as her sis.
ter.
What was your sisters method of de-
tection?" | asked
She was always dressed in street cos
tune, with purse in her hand and some
times a transfer card. as if she were buying
a large bill Then when she caught any
one at work she would give the word to
the officer, whose assistant she was and
who usually shopped with her, and would
follow the woman. Generally the shoplift
or goes to the retiring room. My sister
would follow the shoplifter in there and
watch her, and often would see her conceal
what she had stolen about her person.
Then when she came out the officer would
arrest the shoplifter and Barbara would
search her. -
And you-do you have many cases I'M
der your notlce!'
sHADOwING A WEALTHY THIEF.
''Oh, my goodness. yes, every day. 1t
was not not so very long ago that a very
wealthy lady from Long Island came here
to shop. 1t was in the parasol department
that first noticed her queer actions. |
knew the signs perfectly well and | kept
pretty sharp eye on her. Well. what do
you think that woman, who was worth
thousands of dollars, took? A e5-cent
child's parasoll She walked over to the
light, as if to examine it, but she forgot to
lake it back. Then she went to the second
floor where she joined her friend. Then
those two women went through the china
department and picked up all sorts Of little
things, ike the stopple of a bottle or lit
tie snow scene In giass-odds and ends Of
very little worth.
Il followed them to the toilet room and
| saw them wrap these things up IN paper
and then called the officer. When they
were arrested they played injured inno-
cenCe and threatened us. and all that, but
| knew what we were doing.
Another time this winter | saw one Of
our wholesale customers catching whole
cards OF buttons on her sleeve up under her
dolman WheD she was arrested we
found that she had a sort of catch fastened
on her sleeve which would hook through
the thread which passes from button TO
button Of the back of the card, and N that
way she was soooping In dozens when we
caught her
4 am decidedly in favor OF women de-
tectives for shoplifting, said the man
ager as babe him good-0F. They have
a keenness Of perception and instinct
which enables them to penetrate a mystery
and shoplifters have pretty hard work to
cloak their movements fr1n a lynx-eyed
female detective.
sEDATE MATRoS At MACY 5.
Mac female detective is matronly.
sedate person Of about 45 years. Mrs
Stanley was hotel and railroad detective
before the went TO Macy. She Is a cool
headed woman with steel-grey eyes.
.sShe is colder thansoe itself. said the
quiet. keen-eyed detective who looks
after the big shop on Fourteenth street.
Il have never vet seen her excited over
anything She Is capital detective.