Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1899-09-07
BICYCLE STEALING.

BICYCLE STEALING.
How Dealers I'm New York Are
Wicked and Robbed by Honest
Appearing Persons.
Whether bicycling in the long run is
cheaper than riding in street cars, it is
certain that some persons of unscrupu-
lous tendencies make money by their
cycling adventures. They are those.
who make a practice of stealing bicy-
cles and selling them for what they can
get. Four or five years ago. when the.
price of the cheapest wheels almost
equaled that of the best in the market
to-day, the business of bicycle stealing
was really in its infancy. Men who had
engaged in various lines of crookedness
scSn discovered that the demand for
wheels at a low price furnished excer-
tional inducements for them to make
bicycle stealing a regular occupations,
and the tactics they employed in order
to get possession Of machines were
numerous and often extremely clever.
| During the last two years wheel
stealing has been carried on to great
er or less extent, but until this sum-
mer comparatively few complaints have
! been heard from dealers and individ-
ual riders since 1896. The thieves have
lately started out again in great earn
estness, and their modes of operation
differ in many respects from those pur-
| sued formerly. Dealers tell some curl
GUS stories of the way they have. been
robbed by honest-looking and appar-
emily respectable persons who have
come to their shops ostensibly to buy or
to rent wheels. Ia
"Last week." said a dealer onS the
| West side, "a young man came into my
! store and asked to see a new mans biz
cycle, with 24-inch frame. He said
that his own wheel did not run smooth
! ly and that he desired to get another
one. He inquired my cash price for one
| of the best machines in the store and
| then decided that he would like to ex-
change his old wheel for the one we
were examining. Where is your
,wheel?' I asked. of course must see
it before can tell how much I will be
able to allow you for it,
TITS five or six doors up from here,
in d repair shop said my visitor. The
repairer had one of the wheels off about
five minutes ago and was Strengthening
the front fork, which bent a little in
an accident. If you will just step in
| there for moment you can see it.
| * sSrTha or1
uncommonly frank expression of
countenance made me less suspicious
that I would be generally, but I had al
ready had some experience with
smooth-tall<ing individuals, and made
up my mind would not be taken in by
them again. I was alone in the shop at
the time, but resolved, nevertheless, to
see if there was anything in the mans
game. So I agreed to step over to the
at his wheel. When we arrived there,
instead Of walking to the back of the
shop, where the repair department.
was, stopped purposely about six or
eight feet from the front door to look
at machine which, remarked, had
very odd appearance. A few seconds
later I walked out Of the shop, and as
1 did so saw a man rush into my store
When I got there he was just coming
out with a new $75 bicycle and seemed
embarrassed when he met me face to
face. e.
I was just seeing how easily this
wheel runs he exclaimed when con-
fronted him. IF I can dispose of my
own bike, I'll come back in day or so
and buy this one. tits daisy
= oh, yes,' said I, it's beautiful ma
chine, but if you had got it outside of
this door when saw you, you bet 1
would have your picture in the rogues'
gallery His explanations were pro-
fuse, but they didn't convince me Of his
honest intention. The fact is that he
was watching for me to go into the
other shop, and the moment did so
he improved his opportunity"
"We do not fear the men thieves
| nearly so much as we do the women,"
said another dealer. eff, for example,
a man comes in here to, rent bicycle
and we have any doubt as to his homes
ty, we fatty refuse to let him have it.
But with women it is different. A
woman may come@in all rugged out for
spin and with her face covered with.
smiles. She has been told that our
wheels are better than those in other
places and she wishes to hire one for a
couple of hours. When we inquire her
address she gives one that is mile or
SO away-too far, of course, for us to
send around there to see if it is genuine
adds that she is so and so and ex-
presses great surprise that we should
for moment doubt her sincerity. We
tell her that it is against our rules to
let wheel to any body we don't know,
and that we can scarcely make an ex-
ception in her case. Then she losses
her head, snaps her eyes, and declares
that the whole thing is absurd and that
she is to be deprived of a whole after
moons pleasure on account of our