Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-05-04
THIEVES IN SOCIETY.
STORIES TOLD BY NoNBELlEVERs IN
 KLEpTOMkNlA.

0HsHiou&b4s 1-hleftalGefs -- InIalr E1-
 changes Which May Be enlled Robbery.
 Old Things For New.
 Oh. give it any name you ike--bor- rowing other peoples belongings and failing ever to return them, mistaken identity as to special possessions or klep- tomania, but call it thieving, and something ought to be done about it. y
 This is what the blond woman in the very smart bonnet said to her nearest neighbor in blue, whereupon every other woman near the tea table cut short her conversation and held her cup in midair to hear what the discussion would bring forth.
 That do. ; went on the blond em- phatically sand I've been stolen from repeatedly. No. my dear, won't take a word of it back, and I am not speak ing hastily. Ia every instance it was plain case of theft, and I've not up to date recovered a single belonging. Why, of course if it had been griny fingered sneak thief, or too enterprising house maid, most naturally would have gone to the police sad detectives for pretec- tion and assistance, but it is not aaite so easy to have an individual who wears the best French gloves, whose bonnets come from an expensive importer and who sometimes asks you to share her opera box, receive at her teas oi, take a lift home in her brougham, arrested and searched on suspicion J
 We'll, l neverto remarked the wom- an in blue.
 "Oh, that's just because you are a dear, unsophistieated little creature, and out in your western town they dsn t do snch things. The temptations are not
 so great, but l can assure you that here in our big cities, at regular intervals,
 polite kleptomania is simply rampant,
 and hardly 8 big function breaks up that half the women don t come away quite savage over the loss of some pretty and especially prized belonging. Evi- dently the blond was right, fer all the other women nodded assent, and the hostess was apparently breathless to tell of some personal grievance on this score, when the first speaker broke in again:
 "Yoa see, she elaborated, i've used tO t1i4hh It 414tsS4it islf9O poCll t1S EcI FaHtS fault, or an honest 6fror. when wefound our possessions exchanged for others less valuable or simply disappearing, un- til two CT three times the offenders were caught right ill the act, and then came the awfully dismal consciousness that really nc one could be trusted.
 My first experience was with very costly lace fan I carried to dinner. I held on to 1t most affectionately through out the evening, until some half dozen of us went up to the hostess bedroom for our wraps. There laid it, with my vinaigrette and fan, on the dressing ta- ble, and when I turned to get them again the fan was gone. protested, the maid searched, but nothing came of it, and broken heartedly went down, be- wailing my loss to sympathizing fem mine companion. We went out to our respective carriages together, but as tho butler opened the hall door 8 puff of wind blew her long cloak aside, and there I saw, snug in its pocket, my pre- cious fan. We'll, the next day wrote her very frankly, asking for it's return, suggesting, of course, she had taken it by mistake, and home it came. But we have never spoken since.
 'sThat taught me to look for higher offenders than maids ill dressing rooms, who are usually accused of making way with all wraps, umbrellas, overshoes and what not that may be missing''
 An, that is not my trouble, ? chimed ill debutante across the tea table. "The favorite plan is now to exchange bad for good things. I am growing almost philosophical over the deplorable shab- biness of my wardrobe from this con- stant swapping. Last week, on coming up late to the dressing room from dance, found in place of my brand new green suede carriage oyershoes two overlarge, badly worn ones of rusty black velvet and my lace head scarf ex- changed for frayed one of soiled white chiffon. Naturally cross and sleepy, fell on the tired maid, who wept and denied, but looked as if she could tell tale.
 Only to make test case of 1t rolled nay new French galoches in my maokin- tosh, laid my card on top and put them i'll safe corner of the dressing room of house where I went to luncheon the other day. But it was of no avail. The galoches had been metamorphosed into pair of muddy rubbers with holes in them when I went back, and I didn't grulnble, since my pretty umbrella was left The work of the spoiler goes on in the cloakrooms when big wedding re- captions, teas, musicgles and private balls are in progress.
 {" At one of the big dances of the sea son the hostess simply ordered her maid to issue cheeks for every woman 5 wrap, and. charming to relate. not so much as q hairpin was lest, for at her daughters wedding reception, only week before, three muffs got away somehow without their rightful owners, ana the possessor of $500 sable kand warmer found t1. II