, 1898-07-12
TRICKS OF THIEyING.
HOW sHoPlIFTERS PlLFER IN Nr.v,
WORKS. BIG STORES.
Women Who Use Clever Children Trained
to the Business ~ Aids In Their Nefa-
rious C~allinE-The Close Watch of the
Store Detective.

Store Detective.
Schools for shoplifters are not adver
tised, but they thrive. Female Fagins
are no longer regarded as phenomenal
criminals-they are considered well es-
tablished enemies to the police. Vigil
ance versus shoplifters, though, is o
contest in which the store thieves are
invariably brought to grief.
As q woman leading q little girl pass
ed from counter to counter in O Sixth
venue store n day last week another
oma closely followed and never took
her eyes off her. The woman with the
little girl walked and talked rapidly.
They asked for nothing; their eyes
sought much. Their stops Mt various
counters seldom lasted more than a
second. When they had reached the
jewelry department, their pace slack
ened. AS they passed a counter where
q sale Of gold mounted combs was
in progress the woman's arm flew
out from beneath n black cape and back
again. With the arm on it's return trip
had gone II of the most handsome and
expensive combs.
On the woman and tho little girl
passed until they came opposite a tray
of earrings. The clerk was about to re-
turn the tray to its case.
What pretty stones, mammal ex-
claimed the child.
eyes, my dear" responded the wom-
IN, "but we won't look at them today
"Oh, yes. Let's stop. You know you
promised to buy me some earrings for
my birthday"
81 know, but your birthday is still
far away"
"Why, mamma, you know that it is
next Tuesday"
my %goodnessl Tho child tells the
truth. How time does fly! Well, We'll
look at them, but I'll not promise you
to buy them today"
Then begins the examination of chill
dren's earrings. Mother and daughter
look at them critically-they admire
most Of them. This goes on for several
minutes, tho mother protesting to the
child that the purchase should not be
made today. Diamond earrings Of all
sizes are in the tray.
A customer steps up to make m in
quiry. The clerk turns her eyes for an
instant toward her questioner. One of
the largest Of the diamond earrings
gives q flash and is gone. The little girl
comes between her mother and the
counter. When the customer is gone,
the little girl has two small earrings in
her hand and says:
"WOn'f Won uaf mamma fn hy1y mo
this pair?"
While the clerk smiles and the moth.
er is saying they will call again in a
day or two the large diamond earring
is being fastened inside the cape. The
mother thanks the clerk, then they
hurry from the store.
They arc scarcely out on the sidewalk
before a command is whispered in the
woman's ear:
Return that stolen property"
The girl takes to her heels A mar
follows and catches her.
The woman calls it IN outrage. She
protests; says she'll make them pay fol
the insult. She grows historical. They
lead the two back to IA side door. They
take them into tho searchCr's room.
Then the woman detective carefully OK.
amines all their clothing. The child
cries. The becomes silent. She
sees it's all up. What's the use of GO.
ing to the trouble of making another
scene? The child is IL yerrs old and has
been but n week under instruction. Be.
ing arrested is new to her.
A society takes the child. Her teacher
in crime, the woman who posed as her
mother, is held for trial.
This is but a sample case. In the
same store last week there were 10 ar.
rests for shoplifting. Those of the pris
oners who had never been in such
scrapes before were released. This par
ticular store tries to avoid tho courts as
much rs possible.
One woman who was arrested wore a
shoplifter's skirt. This skirt consists
chiefly of pockets. There are pockets of
all widths and depths. This skirt il
usually worn as MI underskirt. An
opening is provided in the overskirt,
through which the pocket filled skirt is
easily accessible.
In the concealed pockets Of the WON.
an mentioned were found two pieces of
embroidery, several rolls of silk braid,
six remnants Of silk, several pieces OF
jewclry and II pair Of shoes. Two of the
store detectives, a man and n woman,
had watched the purloining of all thesc
articles.
1t is the rule of most stores that no
shoplifters are to be arrested until they
reach the street. Scenes caused by ar.
rests arc very undesirable i'll n place of
business. Besides this, those placed un.
der arrest in stores often make the de-
Tense that they did not intend to take
the goods away-they simply desired to
examine them in n good light.
One shoplifter. arrested last week,
and one on whom the stolen goods were
found, had six children ut home. The
youngest was 0 months old. The worn.
ans husband has a good business. He
furnished bail for her. When the pro.
prietors Of the store learned that the
woman had n 6-n.onths-old child Mt
home they withdrew the complaint
against her. Tie woman's husband said
he could not understand why she should
wish to steal.
Store detectives deny that there is
any such thing as kleptomania.
"Klepton:ania is q mistaken notion
that sone won.on have that stores are
easily victimized. is the definition that
tho detectives Give.-New York Tele-
gram.
A bar Of lead Coz lcd to about 800 de-
hnl,,,- n~I:,, 81 .r me-