Catoctin clarion. [volume] (Mechanicstown, Md.) 1871-1940, 1901-04-25
EASY TO PICK LOCKS.
Ir is NO TROUBLE AT ALL TO THE
EXPERT BURGLAR.

Ordinary Locks Yield to His Skill at
Once and the Others Are Easily
Persuaded - How Skeleton Keys,
Picks and Blanks Are Used.
When the householder gets ready to
turn out the gas for the night prepare
tory to turning in, he makes the roundr
Of the house, turns all the keys to assure
himself the outer doors are locked an.
goes to bed confident that no burglar can
get in unless he saws n hole in the door.
But the householder is mistaken. Moth
ing, unless it be an open door, gives an
expert burglar less trouble than the av-
erage lock- Picking" lock has come
TO be such fine art that there are only
Il few locks, and those especially made to
order, which cannot be picked by man
who knows his business. Some people
think they can fool the lock picker by
leaving the key in the lock on the inside,
so the burglar cannot insert Skeleton"
KEY. This only makes things easier
The man who knows how and has the
proper tools can turn n key just as easily
from the outer side of n door rs though
he we're on the side where the handle OF
the key projects. A slender, strong pair
of steel pliers properly applied VIII
clutch the little end Of the key which ex-
tends below the uotChcs and turn II caSl-
ly and silently.
But that is not lock picking That Is
child's play. TO open door which mas
been locked and from which the key has
been removed is a different proposition,
but old policemen declare there are very
few if any doors on ordinary dwellings,
and fiat buildings which are secured by
locks able to resist the advances of the
burglar What are known as Skeleton
KEYS are made like ordinary doorkryS,
only the guards, which in regular keys
contain several notchcs of different
depths, are very thin and delicate. In
bunch Of these keys each one has n guard
lust q shade wider or longer than the
next one, and the burglar tries them one
by one until he usually strikes one winch
will do the business, ralse the proper tufn-
blers In the lock and shoot the bolt back.
Where the old fashioned rim locks are
used, the sort which are screwed to the
door and are now found only III very old
frame buildings or in the cheaper class
Of hotels, this is easy. Any one who has
ever lost the key to one of these locks
must have discovered that almost any old
key he borrowed from the ncighbors
would turn the bolt. A buttonhook VIII
usually do It, Any slight projection on
slender rod which will raise the simple
tumbler in the lock will allow the bolt to
be removed.
But "mortisC" locks, the variety in use
in all modern buildings, which are fitted
into the edge OF the door and leave moth
ing showing but the brass plate on the
edge and the two kcyholcs are bit more
intricate in their mechanism and are like
" to hold the burglar a moment or two
longer But they will eventually yield to
the gentle movements of the expert lock
picker When several skeleton keys nave
been tried and none is found to be the
proper one, the "picks." which give the
art its name, are introduced. These are
slender bits Of steel with one end turned
up at n right angle, resembling button.
hook with the shook" Strengthened out 10
form an l.. The long end in the hand Of
the burglar is SO slender that several of
these can be inserted at once into the cir
cular part Of the koyhol". and they are
put in one 10y one. each one raising tum-
bier and holding it up until the proper
number Of tumblcrs are raised, when the
bolt moves back and the door is open.
There is scarcely a lock in town On
which an expert cannot perform this
trick-that is, Of the common variety Of
locks which can he opened through n
kcyholc from either side Of the door.
With spring locks-or might latch locks,
as they are calcd-thc work is bit
more difficult sometimes and is more Of
ten performed with a skeleton key than
with picks. The expert burglar is pro-
vidcd with a pock"tfUl q pieAt latch-
keys cut from steel or iron blanks" and
each one having uotchrs n shade different
from the others. In the cheaper grade
OF night catches one Of these keys is al
most certain to prove duplicate Of the
one on the key ring Of the householder
snugly asleep inside i'll perfect conf.
Gcncc in his lock.
And after the house has been robbed
and no one disturbed the folks say:
Il can't see how they got in, for the
door was locked, aud we found il locked
this morning.
The wise burglar takes caro- to close the
door behind him so as to avert suspicion
as long as possible.
Not all of the lock picking is done by
criminals, however. Some Of the most
expert men in that line are practical
locksmiths and employees Of the biz safe.
making firms, who have spent years in
pccring into locks and dcyisinG m,thods
for making them proof against all at
tacks save those OF the keys intended for
them. The battle constantly raging be-
tween the makers of high power shells
and the makers Of armor plate is no
more steadily wagcd than that between
lockmakcrs and burglars that is. max
ers OF locks which cost a barrel of money
and are intended to guard vaIuabcs, The
so called burglar proof safe OF 20 years
ago would he laughed at by the safe
blower of today. The time lock doors OF
q safe deposit vault, with their ponder
GUS cranks and screw thread mechanism,
are the highest type of the lock experts
art. They are supposed to be absolute
~ proof against everything except earth.
Guakes and properly applied dynamite,
But when they get out OF order and re
fuse to open at the appointed time the
lock expert is sent for, and after an hour
or two OF gentle turning and twisting and
listening to the interior clicking he
swings open the door, and the trick Is
done.-Chicago Chronicle.