The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-01-21
snE LIKES ctrCnIya 1HIEpLS

woman Detecuv- who watehe. for
Shopiitrr- ia "a broadway store.
While the recent success of Miss Alexander
in capturing shOulitcrs has been widely adj
vertiscd. II is not remarkable and dou bt' oss
would not have become known to the public
II the methods employed in the larger retail
stores had obtained in the store whore she
does her clever work. 4 dozen dotections a
day is the average record Ia one OF the big
retail establishments on Sixth avenue. Few
arrests are made. herauS' the offenders IN the
ma lority Of Instances a~e not professional
snopliIteTs, but amateurs who steal articles Of
small value to keep them for personal use.
The facts that Miss Alexander follows an oc-
cupation new for women and is employed In
store where the majority OF shoplifters are
sent to court combine to make her work inter-
estinG and known to the public. She is
French woman. about 20 years old, OF slight
build. and has piercing black eyes that are
constantly moving. -Four years ago she gained
catcher in n French school in this city. Whom
tine other girls missed such articles as books.
tracsSd I'll" thieves, She did this for fun and
was invariably successful.
After leaving school a friend suggested that
Miss Alexander could turn her talent to good
account. She adopted tho suggestion. obtain
ing employment in . well known private de;
tectiye agency in this city where she worked
for three years, She did all sorts Of work
where a womRn's tact could be utilized. She
secured evidence against black mailers and
Swallowed co-respondents in divorce cases
Miss Alexander declines to discuss her aiven-
lures. because she says that she was sworn to
secrecy. The chief OF the bureau, an old and
successful detective taught her many trade
secrets. As the study OF physiognomy is OF
first Importance, she learned to detect thieves
by physical characteristics-
A year ago Miss Alexander became a shop
detective. and. she Gays. tax es keen delight in
catching thieves. though she does not like to
appear against them in court She has aver
aged one arrest a month. and claims to have
made no mistakes. She stands near the store
door. dressed in q smart shopping costume
and watches the people coming In. When she
sees a man or woman who acts sus pic iously-
and she says that the majority are men she
follows that per on about the store. she talks
to the sales girls a. an intending purchaser
would while shs keeps one eye on the pect-
ed person. She waits patiently until she sees
an article snAtched from tho counter aud
dropped into n pocket
When the thief reaches the door she follows
and brings him or her back with tho remark
that the proprietor requests an Interview.
store, where a few questions are asked. There
IL usually denial of guilt Then Miss Alex
ander tells in which pocket the stolen goods
are, and "a search H. made. IL she and the pro-
prietor are satisfied that il Is the first offence
and the offender Is entitled to clemency. a
release follows. otherwise the case goes to
court. Miss Alexander says she has heard OF
kieptomaniacs. but docs not lelievs In them;
neither does she believe in hypnotism, though
rhs has been charged with Unconsciously
hypnotizing people into stealing.