Los Angeles herald., 1906-10-18
SCHOOL GIRLS
As SHOPL|FTERS
NOT SUSPECTED BECAUSE OF
YOUTH
They Can Hardly Wait Till 8 O'Clock
to Begin PiIferng from the
Counters of Stores, They
Declare
snecial to The Herald.

| ISDeC1al
NEW YORK, oct. 17.-With voice
and gesture alike emphasizing the sur
prise expressed on their small faces
at their arrest for shoplifting, two
small girls yesterday told detectives
of the Tenderloin station, in hopeful
defense, that more than twenty of
their small friends were daily engaged
in stealing whatever they could get
their hands on. These children were
their schoolmates, they told the de-
tectives and the excursions to the
shops were undertaken as soon as
school was dismissed
1--WE have been doing this for two
weeks" the children confessed. And
oh. we've had the best luck sometimes.
Why, only yesterday we got two nice
fur coats, but of course on some days
we are not so lucky. And we've had
such good times with the money we
got OF course we sold our stuff to a
woman that lives in our neighborhood
and then we bought ice cream and
candy.
Woman Bought the PIunder
"Why, we could hardly wait for
school to let out. All the children do
it, and the woman buys all the stuff,
except sometimes when we give things
to our folks
Under the close questioning of the
detectives the children told the name
of the woman to whom they sold their
goods. Beyond admitting to reporters
that she lived near the children the
detectives refused to reveal her iden-
tity. A search was Immediately COM
menced for her. The children who
were sent to the Children's society said
they were Lena Palla, twelve, of No.
Gil CT nd
also twelve, of No. 1S0 Prince street.
The girls had been arrested in a
Sixth avenue department store when
Store Detective Kash noticed that the
bundles that they carried appeared
carelessly wra pped up.
In the bundles were woman's hat
worth $3.50 and pair of slippers
which Kash recognized as having come
from the counters of the store, and
which the children admitted taking. A
suit OF mans clothing, two pairs of
slippers, a shirt waist, and a baby's
slip, the children confessed they had
stolen from another store.
When Kash telephoned there to tell
of their arrest he learned that two
other small girls had just been ar
rested in a store at Fourteenth street.
At the Mercer street station they had
given the names of Sarah Giarce, thir-
teen, of No. q Bedford street and
Mary Tressie, eleven, of 10. SO
Thompson street
To the detectives the children told a
story similar to that related by the
Palla and Lunze children. They were
questioned closely and at the end of
the interview Detectives Sechler,
Reich and Barnitz hurried to the
Ciacio girls home.
There they found Mrs. Frances
Ciacio, the child's mother and a widow,
whom they Immediately placed under
arrest on suspicion of knowing about
the thefts. In her rooms the detect
ives found eight dozen new silver
spoons and eleven napkin rings.
ChIdren's Pockets STUFFED
All of the big department stores have
been troubled by child shoplifters and
the police believe that they have at
last got Upon the trail of the woman
who may be at the bottom of the
thefts.
In Harlem three other small shop
lifters were arrested yesterday. Po-
liceman Schine, of the West One Hun
dred and Twenty-fifth street station,
saw two small boys and a girl at
One Hundred and Twenty fifth street
and Seventh avenue. Their pockets and
blouses bulged with packages Schine
questioned them and at last took them
to the station.
In their pockets and clothes he found
three dolls, an outfit of dolls under
wear two pocketbooks, fourteen pen
ellis, seven rubber erasers and six rub
Der bands. The children said they
We're Harold Burns, nine years old.
William. seven, and Lillian, six, of No.
8 East one Hundred and Twelfth
street. None of the youngsters could
remember where they had collected
their spois.