The morning times., 1895-11-24
Clever HOTEL SHEAES
Washington HOste!ries Their
Mecca Some Years Ago.
ROBBERY OF MRS. POTTER
Usually Weil-Dressed, Prepossess-
ing Men-win Follow II Rich Victim
for MOnths-Some OF the Men who
Used to Operate Here.

Inc DOtuest, tieNeTeSt, ana most success
fui rogues known to the police are that
class of criminals who make hotels and
swell bOarding-huuses the scenes of their
depredations, and who are termed in de-
tective parlance hotel sneaks."
As a rule, they secure large sums i'll
money and Jewels or other valuable trim
kets, and when they once make a haul they
are as hard to find as any evil-doer can
make himself. BY the time their thefts
are discovered they are up and away, and
just as likely as not To be planning coup
in some other city.
Although infrequcnt in late years. Wash
ington has not been by any means free
from visits Of these casy-gOing gentle
men, and some Of the most notorious crooks
who have figured in the criminal annals
or this country have at one time or an
other made lUcal hotels their fields OF
operation. Recently robberies of tn is
kind have been on rather a small scale, bat
several years ago they were Of frequent
occurrence, and the amounts involved often
aggregated thousands uf dollars.
william Connolly, alias "Old Bill one
of the pioneers among this ella IS OF thieves.
did work here i'll the old days, and was
turned up by the police and sent ''over the
road" Little Boy Blue - the hotel
sneak who robbed NJ rs. Potter of her dia-
.
left few other rifled rooms around town.
just TO show his skill. and Dave Cummings,
alias Little Dave" William Carter, alias
Three Fingered Jack" John Cannon,
aud that crook of many aliases. Cha rle S
Hylebert, alias Cincinnati Red" alias
Red Hyle," all high-clasS criminals, are
old acqua intanccs Of the Washington detec
tive force.
MEN OF GOOD APPEARANCE.
The success sful hotel sneak, of course, is
a man of respectable appcarance. and good,
smooth address. He is a reader of the
newspapers, keeps well Informed ON topics
of the day, and is able TO start Il CONVEX
sation that will open the way into the good
graces Of the hotel clerk at most any time.
His especial prey are prOfe ssional people.
female theatrical stars. bridal parties,
and all people likely /" carry jewtlry or
other valuables. For these he will lie in
wait for days.
Goin. through a room is simple enough.
Knowing the number wei. the cautious
thief waits in the darkcned hall until deep
breathing or 4 snorc from within tells OF
the deep and peaceful sumbcr OF his pro-
posed victim. Then hc steals silently from
his hiding place and picks the lock. If the
door is locked with q key which j left in
theiock on side, Il pair of Ofscissur-shaped
nipperS with hollow ends are inserted in
it is comparatively easy To unlock the door.
But very frequently there is sliding bolt
on the inside of the door. above or below
the lock, and ii requires greater care and
ingenuity to slip this back. Either bent
wire or 4 piece of stiff whalebone. with a
bit of string tied To- one end. is used. With
the latter instrument. after locating the
bolt by pushing on the door, the end of tile
bone 10 which the string is tied is put
through the ke y-holc. a nj a pail on the si ring
makes it curve either UP or down, and be-
come like a string bow.
Then il is an easy matter to work the
bolt-luCk ana enter the room.
GOES THROUGH THE CLOTHES.
Perhaps lying on the back of the first
char he sees, ne will find his victims
trousers, or 1t may be in this fin dc steele
era of female clothing that natty pair
of boomers viii greet his greedy gaze. He
quickly goes through those and looks for
valuables.
There is always something worth taking
under the slccpcr's pillow, either "a watch,
wallet or 4 pistol, and after going through
the loose clothing, the thief slips his hand
softly and easily under and draws forth
whatever is there. Then with an adept at
the art going through the rest of the room
is merely matter OF few minutes.
IL the thief has a room at the hotel and
he is likely to remain and will not be sis-
pected. Otherwise, he loses no time in get
ting on a train, and by the time the rob
berry is discovered, he is miles away and
speeding toward green fields and pastures
new, with wallet and pocket well filled.
Often he carries with him booty from half
a dozen rooms that he has plundered in one
night.
Tue leisure time>nf the hotel sneak is
IN .sTiy in - Nnnnls Tho NnriDus
hotels, ana after he has fixed a number
at different hotels he watches the register.
Whenever Il guest who is likely to be profit
able happens to he assigned to one OF the
fixed" rooms there is very likely to be
a robbery reported the next morning. Fix
ing a room is done by preparing the lock
so that it can be opened without trouble.
Sometimes the screws are drawn and re-
placed in holes a trifle larger, SO they will
not be hard to push out, and many ways
Of fixing are known to the profession.
DETECTIVE BOYD'S EXPERIENCE.
Detective George Boyd at police head
quarters has had considerable experience
in handling this class of crooks and says
that they are the most difficult of all
men to run down, but after they are
caught it is easy To find dozens of peo-
pie who will come forward and COM
plain against them. The men Themselves,
and pleasant, and very easy to get acquaint-
ed with.
The foolish desire of many women TO
show off valuable jewels i'll public places
is responsible for great many such rob=
berries. The flash OF diamonds to the COW
etous eyes Of the hotel sneak is like water
to the thirsty, and when he sees Jewelry
of sufficient value to be worked hard for
he never leaves off until he has 1t in his
possession. In some instances these men
have been known to follow their victims
about for months, from one end of the
continent to the other, before making
successful coup.
A successful game is worked sometimes
by the chap who presents a package at the
desk addressed TO some prominent guest,
who is out, and marked G. o. d. $40. The
clerk. of course, pays the charge, and when
the guest returns hands the package and
bill IL him. On opening it lot OF rub
bish of any kind is found.
Another racket sometimes worked is TO
walk up to the desk while a crowd is stand
ing around and ask for any key that hap
pens to be in the rack. In a rush, while
a lot of fresh arrivals are coming in, the
clerk almost invariably hands out the key
without looking very closely at the caller.
Then with a clear coast and everything
his own way the thief goes through the
room a this leisure.
No Concealment.
T,bav yere sta ndinr in q quiet nook in