The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-08
TRICKERY OF THIEVES.
The Ingenuity Displayed is simply
Marvellous.


THE ingenuity displayed by diamond
thieves" remarked my friend, the jew
eler sis something truly marvellous. Now,
take, for example the counter trick.
What could be heater. A man comes in
and asks to look at some diamonds.
While you are getting them from the
case, he quietly rubs some prepared wax
under the ornamental margin of the coun-
ter in front of him. Then he examines
the stones in the tray, and at the first
opportunity he sticks one or two of them
on the wax under the counter. If you
miss it before he goes out, all he has to
do is to rub his knee along the counter,
and the stone is found on the floor. If
you do not miss it, he either takes it
himself or sends in an accomplice, who
asks to see something entirely different,
and quietly appropriates the hidden ar
ticle.
Another fellow we have to look sharp
ly after is the diamond Ticker. He ASKS
to examine tray of loose stones, and
they are handed out. He bends down to
breathe on them 50 as to get their color,
and ticks up two or three on his tongue.
But worse than either of these because
more difficult to detecA is the substituter.
Personally have so tar escaped this tel-
low but / heard recently of a case which
occurred not long since over in London.
A gentlemanly appearing person entered
jewelry store there and asked to look
at a tray of solitaire rings that had for
some time been displayed in the window.
He examined them for a long time, and
seemed to enjoy it. Finally he picked out
three rings, but could not decide which
to take, and ended by saying that he
would call tomorrow with his wife and
let her choose from the three.
THE next afternoon the prospective
customer returned with his wife, as prom
Used, and the pair deliberately examined
every ring in the tray. Finally a ring
valued at f100 was selected. and the jew
eler was requested to have it engraved
and send it with bill to their hotel. Then
the pair went out, The jeweler handed
the ring to his engaver, and, examining
his tray. felt relieved to find that no rings
were missing.
I'D to him excitedly: DO you know that
this ring is plated and the stone pasteY
he asked.
then he saw it all. Hurryng to the tray,
he found every one of the rings like that
the engraver held. The thief had made
an imitation of each ring, and, by clever
the genuine ones, ana so roDbc@ the un-
fortunate jeweler before his very eyes.
The lesson cost him f3,09O, for he never
saw thieves or rings again.
'sSometimes an elegantly dressed female
will drop a stone into a slit made in the
palm of her glove A LONDON merchant
tells the story: One day there entered
our store a lady, elegantly attired and
perfectly self-possessed, who wanted va
rious expensive articles of jewelry. A
number of brooches, ETC., were shown her,
and when the counter was quite covered
she laid down her little muff and then Sc
lected quite a number OF Things, directed
IN have them sent with bill to a given
address in Portland place, took up her
muff again, and then went out. Immedi-
ateIy afterWard we missed a diamond
worth IS 900, and a man was sent post
haste after her hanson, which was still
in sight He soon lost it in the crowd.
however. and then went on to Portland
Mace but only to find that no such lady
was known there 1t came out afterward
that there was a slit in her muff, through
which she clevery absorbed whatever
particularly pleased her fancy. No, we
never got the diamond back.
sIn Paris, also, the jewelry thief Is
rampant, though / think his tricks are
Scarcely so ingenious as those employed
nv his brethren of London and New York.
a matchmaker in the Rue de Ia Rochefou-
cauId was recently victimized in the fol-
Lowing manner: While he was out on
business a well-dressed stranger came In.
The watchmaker's wife was behind the
counter The stranger pretended to be
very angry telling her that her husband
had promised to repair his watch and let
him have ii back by certain date, but
had failed to do so. There Is it," said
the man, pointing to handsome gold
chronom eter. Il shall not leave IL here
any longer, but shall take 1t somewhere
else With this, he took the watch and
hurried out Of the shop When the watch
maker returned his wife upbraided him
for having kept the gentleman's watch
SO long An explanation followed, how
ever and II was soon made clear that the
irate customer was nothing more nor less
thap p clever thief.