Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1891-01-06
NEST OF kLeP1oMANlAcs-
n Chicago Detective RetailS . Very In
toreStInE "Reminiscences.

lAob 10 % dS IL Is pCCu11oI'
/ never could understand why women
who havo comfortable homes and arc not
in actual want-whose husbands would
give thom money to buy things with il
thcy asked for it-should, for the nero
love of stealing, purloin articles often
times such as they could never use.
but III tell you" tho officer continued,
"thcro is not as much kleptomania as
thero is alleged to be. The fact is tho
disease is, nine times out of ten, plain
larceny. 1t becomes kleptomania only
when tho thieves arc detected and turn
out to be ostensibly respectable people.
was called into n case once which led
TO train Of the most peculiar circum-
stances l veruncovered
"a certain retail store on State street
had been missing articles for long
time. Ladies' gloves, hosiery, velvet
ribbon and other objects of feminine
use had been disappearing by Wholesale.
Tho proprietors suspected woman who
was good customer of theirs, and, so
far as her appearance was concerned,
should have been above suspicion. She
was OF middle ago, dressed richly and
lived in q fashionable clearinghouse.
Before proceeding against her it was
necessary to have proof, and engaged
board at tho house where she stopped.
BeSldeS the suspect, the boardcrS in
Guided q Board Of Trade man of sixty, q
thin, old lady Of the same ago, who had
son of twenty and spinster daughter
who taught a kindergarten school; a
commercial IMAM and his wife, and q
clerk in q Wholesale coal Office who was
q natty dresser.
ut took mo only q few days to get
the bearings of the house. The suspect
had room on tho third floor. She was
downtown all day, though she had
nothing to keep her unless it was her
occupation OF shop-lifting. She had
leans Of her own evidently from her
room and dress. In less than n week
discovered that she was selling artic les
to tho other ladies in the house. She
would drop into tho room of the COM
mcrcial mans wife and display bolt of
velvet ribbon or several pairs of gloves.
She said she had got them very cheap,
md that though she could not wear them
sho had bought them because thcy were
such great bargain. Then she would
inquire If tho commercial mans wife
did not want to- buy the articles. / got
enough evidence TO convict her and took
her to the Store-keepcr'S. Ui course she
played tho klcptomania dodge, and they
lot her off.
Now 1 get to the best part of my
story. l discovered that in that board
lag-houSe there were two other klcpto-
nlaniacs--if You choose to call them
that. One was the Old lady whose
daughter taught kindergarten, the
other was the young man in the coal
office.
Tho old lady's daughter treated her
very badly, because she was not cul-
tivated person, while her daughter
made great pretontions to culture. In
fa?G, she often struck her. Though the
daughter received good salary and one
son. living in the mousse got SlS or $50 per
week, and two other grown sons were
prosperous. one receiving $4,000 and the
other $4,000 per year, the old lady was
never given any ready money. Why?
because she chung with n mothers
fcrvor to drunken, worthless older son,
who sncaked to the house when his sis
ter was away and 'hled her for all her
spare change.
''She had to steal to keep that black
sheep in q maudlin state. The other
ladies missed little articles from time TO
bimc, but the clearinghouse was q
swell one, you know, and they could not
voice their suspicion. The Board of
Trade man missed half dozen COLLARS
ono day, and shortly aftorward he saw
tho son Of tho old lady wearing one
Tho boy had givon his mother money TO
buy collars. which had gone into the
stomach of his brother in the shape of
whisky. Tho larcenies wero brought
homo to the old lady by the discovery Of
6 lot OF towels, the property OF tho
clearinghouse keeper, which were found
wrapped up in one of her potticoats,
:.ho daughter tearrully said that sho
w&S ltloptomaniac and sought another
EOUrding-house. Underwear missed by
usalc hoarders was found in the trunk Of
tho yOnng man who worked in coal
Office and with both these discov-
cries came the explanation OF tho abb