The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-02-21
NOT EASY TO ESCAPE.
AVERAGE CRIMINAL PRACTICALLY
SURE TO BE CAUGHT.
Conscience the First and Greatest Ala Of
the Detectives - Letters, Indiscretions.
Careiessness. Any or All Of These May
Cause Betrayal.

Careiessness, Any or All Of These May
Cause Betrayal.
On the evening after the capture of a
man for whom the police had been hunt
ing for several months party OF men
who had met by chance In a cafe began to
discuss the case, and one of them said that
he was positive that, under similar cir
cumstances, he would have fooled the de-
tectives and escaped.
"Maybe you'll tell us how you would
escape II you had committed crime"
said the first speaker. "We'll make up
the crime, and you'll tell what you would
do. Let's take robbery and an easy one
Suppose you went from your Office to
Jones' here. Jones knows you as respect
able man. You see on his desk q bundle
of bank notes Say there Is SEQ, 600 in the
package Lots of people are entering the
Office and walking past the desk. Jones
attention Is diverted. You pick up the
bank notes and slip them into your pock-
ct. No one sees you DO 1t. You chat with
Zones for q few minutes, bid him good
day and walk out OF the office. Well give
Jones 15 minutes to discover his loss. You
know that 80 people have had chance to
steal the money, and that you are one of
the last who will be suspected. Now,
what would you do?"
"It seems tos,ne that the case you make
out is altogether too easy" said the self
offered criminal. 81 should do absolutely
nothing except attend to my everyday
business in my everyday way. On leaving
Jones ! would walk out OF his office, speak
ing to the men whom knew, and then !
would go to my own office, put the money
in an envelope and lay the envelope on my
desk as though 1t was of no particular
value. / would work until my usual hour
to go home came, and then, after dinner,
/ would come down here and see you fell
lows. l would not vary the routine of my
business or social life. Probably the news.
papers of the next day would contain long
accounts of the mysterious theft Of $780,
900, with a hundred guesses as to the
identity of tho robber. If they did, 1
would drop In on Jones, tell him / was
sorry for his loss and ask him II could
help him in any way He would bewail
his loss and maybe might borrow few
thousand of me to tide him over.
81 would leave the $50, 900 In my desk.
/ would not touch it. l would let 1t Rick
around. Iwould talk of the robbery with
my friends, but not too much. would
say that 1 hoped the robber would be
caught, but would be careful not to be
too talkative about the case. Jones would
send for the police and all of his clerks
would be examined. The detectives would
look wise, talk about outside and inside
jobs, round up few we'll known sneak
thieves and have Jones look at them. The
matter would die out after awhile. After
few months had passed could spend the
money and my theft would never be ssAsy
pected."
"Your theory Is all right except for one
thing" said man who had listened at
tentively to the conversation. "You for
get that you are made of flesh and blood.
If you were cut out of block of wood,
you'd get away splendidly. But the mo-
ment you got that money In your pocket
your fear of detection would become so
great that your knees would knock to-
gether. Even II you controlled yourself
until you had finished that chat with
Jones you speak about so lightly, which i
don't think you would be able to do, the
strain would exhaust you so that you
would go to pieces when. you got to your
own office. You also speak of letting the
money kick around. You couldn't do 1t.
That little package of bills would grow to
a mountain. Your nerve would fail you
II 1t lay on your desk. Knowing it was
there, you would be in panic lest some
one should find it. If you put it away in
vault, the whole thing would weigh on
you. You'd dream of the stuff. Your
nerve would give way. You would betray
yourself in fortnight.
"All that you say about self betrayal Is
true" said the man who started the con
versation, "and there are other things to
be considered. Jones would have talks
with the detectives. He is now healthy
minded man who believes all his friends
are honest, but in his conversations with
the policemen he would hear about rob-
berries of mothers by their children, of hus-
bands by their wives and of dozens OF cases
where intimate friends had stolen from
the houses of their associates. His mind
troubled by his loss, he would be con-
stantly on the lookout for plausible ex-
PLANTATION of the mystery. At first he
would declare that neither you nor any
other friend could have taken his money.
Then, as no thought of the stories he
would hear from the detectives, he would
begin to think it possible that some one he
trusted as O friend had committed tho
theft.
"He would get into condition In which
he would suspect every one, and after
awhile ne would give your name with
those of all the other men he saw on the
day of the robbery. Then detective
would call on you. He wouldn't take into
account that you were respectable man
or anything of that kind. Unless you
have more nerve than any one l know,
his interview would shake you some, and
you can be sure that he would see any
break you made. Then the rest would be
easy. You would be caught either by
blunder of your own or by the work of one
Of the detectives you think SO useless
now"
"Remember that you have conscience
and that misery loves company" said the
man who began the talk. "Conscience,
confessions, indiscreet conduct, letters
all of them play part In the capture OF
criminals. They are the detectives aids.
One of them is bound to crop out In the
lawbreaker at one time or another. Think
IL over and consider every side of tho ques-
tion, and I'm sure you'll agree with me
in the opinion that criminal must be an