The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1906-10-14
CROOKS AFRAID
Of THEIR OWN
SHADOW

"In all grades of crooks there are
certain peculiarities which are very
Marked said an old police detective,
to a New York Sun reporter. How
do detectives go into a crowd of peo-
pie and arrest twenty or thirty pro-
fessional pickpockets in the course Of
a few hours?
There is a popular idea that they
are familiar with their faces. They
are are to a certain extent, but it's
the way the pickpocket acts in a
crowd rather than his face, which tells
the trained detective his character.
"Pickpockets are very easily scared
off. If a man who has been marked
by crooks gives the least sign that
he suspects what is going on they will
drop him like not cake. | HAYS seen
them mark out man and follow hir'
until the man happened TO turn
around and look one of them squarely
in the face. Then l have seen them
drop that man instantly, although 1
was morally certain that he hadn't
the faintest suspicion that anything
was wrong.
1.-The pickpocRet is afraid of his
own shadow. If he is on a street car
and any one gets on that car who he
thinks knows him he will leave the
car at once, even If he had no inten-
ton Of doing anything wrong He Is
afraid Of people becoming too familiar
with his face. Then again he figures
that if anything hapepns on that car
he will be peld responsible of it
whether he is innocent or guilty.
'The same peculiarities mark the
highwayman, commonly called the
strongarm man. Here in New York
the strong-arm man usually follows
his victim home and attacks him On
dark street. Most of his victims
are drunken men, because he can the
more easily sneak up behind them
and lay them out with a club without
being seen.
"a strong-arm man will run like a
whipped dog If mis- victim happens to
turn around and get a look at him.
He's too cowardly to kill a man, and
ne won't attack a man who has had
look at him, as he knows that that
man may indemnity him later on.
"The fiat thief is the easiest man of
them all to avoid. Just make a rule
| never to leave a fat alone. The fat
thief never gets in fat. unless he is
butte sure that it Is empty. although
there have been exceptions to this
rule
He will Vancouver for days some
times before he makes an attempt at
a place, and a person who is at all
observing ought to know that some
thing is wrong. Lock out for vour
place If you have had men coming to
the door inquiring for people that you
never heard of.
TOO many peddlers is another sign
OF danger, but the surest sign that
your place is planted is when your
bell rings number of times in a
week, and when you press the button
to open the door no one responds.
| THAT means that the thief is trying
to find out whether you are at home
When the door opens he knows that
you are. and he takes his departure
If you don't answer his ring he will
ring again and usually a third and
fourth time
Then he will come upstairs and
ring the bell Of the apartment a num-
Der of times. Getting no response he
will open the door and IL won't take
him long to get everything worth hav.
ing out
The sooner people get away from
the notion that locks and chains will
keep the thief out OF the fat the bet
ter for them. Fifteen or twenty min,
utes at The outside is all that an ex
pert wants to get in any place. II
donesn't matter how he does it, 1t is
enough that he does The burglar
alarm viii keep him out, but the lock
never"