The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-12-22

ed, and work almost entirely by in
stinct. Some of the most successful
women in this line of work are dis
Broadway store last year young wo-
man in the jewelry department tipped
off, so many suspicious characters to
the detectives that the chief of the
bureau became interested in her. This
year she is on his regular force, and
is one of his most efficient workers.
1t goes without saying that her sal
airy was very substantially increased
when she stepped from behind the
counter to the aisle. An uptown firm
had serious difficulty last season Sc
curing competent female detectives.
One evening the senior partner CHANGED
to meet, in a social way, bright news
paper woman who hailed from Den
yer and who was trying to secure a
foothold in metropolitan journalism.
When she recited some of her expert
ences in reporting criminal cases. muir
ders, confidence queens" etc, the des-
perate searcher for female detective
acumen graspd at her tale as the
drowning man at the proverbial straw.
She was only too glad to try the work,
and so skillful were her methods, so
uniformly just her decisions, that she
was retained the year round at a sal
airy much larger than she could earn
at literary hack-work.
One of the hardest things for the
newly appointed detective to learn is
that the store is not police headquar-
tiers where each arrest is regarded as
q veritable scalp-lock. His most inn
portant lesson is to avoid trouble for
his house. A false arrest is costly
mistake. Damage suits will follow.
The store detective must be doubly
sure. Usually they work in pairs, and
a suspect is not accused unless two
detectives have seen him stealing and
can corroborate each others testimony.
What trouble a level-headed detec-
tive can save his firm is well illus
trated in the following instance: A
fashionable woman whose trade was
worth hundreds of dollars annually to
q dry goods house, suddenly exclaim-
ed at a bargain sale, that her purse
had been stolen. She declared that a
woman next to her. plainly dressed.
but intelligent looking, had taken IT,
Accuser and accused were rescued by
the fioorwalker from the mob which
quickly formed about them. and were
conducted to the detective bureau,
next to the main offices OF the flrm
Here, one Of the partners. at the re-
quest Of his excited and influential GUS
toner, was about TO have the suspect
searched when the house detective. a
quiet, unpretentious woman interfered.
She had been at the same counter
and insisted that the theft had not
been committed. The rich customer
ragged, but the Arm. having faith in its
detective, hesitated and finally offered
TO reimburse the wealthy woman II
she would drop the case and accept
the amount OF her loss. At this. how
ever, the accused woman, insisted on
being cleared. and though the house
detective refused 20 search her. she
demanded that her sccuser should
Nothing was found upon her. Thank
ing the nrm for their courteous treat
ment ana giving her name and address
sne departed. The firm advertised
Tor the purse and II was returned
having been found az another store
where tho loser had previously been
shopping. 1hs woman who had been