Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1908-03-04
Little Mrs. Patten.


| uuSudHu DeGuuSe just dS tues Wtle
about leaving Chicago an associate
! judge had been taken Ill and Judge
| Patten had to sit in case for him He
! had sent his wife on and would join
her within ii week
At the eld OF the week the judge did
| not appear. He wrote a letter Instead.
| The letter was shown to the landlord
| and then accidentally" left on table
| IN the paior for half day. aud it was
| doubtless read by a score of the female
| guests. He would be detained another
| surely arrive then. There was a print
| ed letter head TO show that the judge
| he!on~ed tn a high court. and in the
| letter he inclosed draft on New York
| for IL hundred dollars. If there was
any doubt about Mrs. Patteu's social
states the letter settled it. The hus-
| band wrote that she had been inquired
| after by people whom all of us knew
to lie prominent in society.
| Little Mrs Patten had been with US
| eight days when there was rohherv
| in the house-the first for five years
| There was no dress except at dinner
| Sunday evenings, and then for such Il
| lot Of conservative people as we were
| there was quite a display of jewelry.
| A lady who had got out .Ler diamonds
| to wear was called from the room a
moment. and when she returned the
stones were gone. The value was about
$1,000 but the excitement kicked up
was valued at FIVE times as much. The
theft was laid to the chambermaid to
waiter and to others, but in such
cases nothing can be done but to sus-
| pect. We all talked, and we all sympa-
thized and suggested, and little Mrs.
| Patten adorned herself with $1,000
worth of diamonds and acknowledged
that she was very careless and expect
ed to be robbed herself some day.
I must explain to you that the regu-
| lar doors had been taken off for. the,
summer and replaced by Stat or blind
doors to permit Of free circulation.
! There was a space of about a foot at
| top and bottom. and no. watchmen
were kept in the halls at night las
| these Stat doors locked, the idea was
that the thief was slim enough to slip
over or under them. There were per-
| haps ten boys at the hotel with their
parents, but none Of them could be
suspected. In fact the detective who
was summoned and came down as
guest could not find thing to found &
suspicion on. After working his head
for day he recommended that watch
| men be stationed in the halls and went
his way. Girls were placed on watch.
Nothing occurred Monday night. but
| on Tuesday night there followed three
| more robberies of rooms. The plumber
was about the same as before In two
of the rooms were husbands and wives;
| in the third was Il woman who's HIS
| band had taken Il run up 20 tortn on
| business. Not one of them had be-:
| awakened. There was a girl on watch
in that hall, and. of course, she was a;
! once charged with having fallen asleep,
| Wednesday night | went TO bed -
| sleep soundly, but | had my plans for
| the following night. am an old bach
elor, and had room by myself, Lit
! tie Mrs. PGtten acted no different from
the other ladies'. She was free to talk
about the robberies and had taken her
| jewels to the office safe or had at least
handed in case. She was the thief,
as you are prepared to hear, but not
one professional detective in hundred
would have had the slightest suspicion
| Of her.
| When l went to bed Thursday night
did something very smart crawled
under instead of into the bed. ! ex-
pected the thief to come, and meant
to make capture had blackjack
| with me and ropes for tying the rascal,
and at that date could handle almost
any man | came across. Nothing oc-
Cured up TO midnight. but an hour
later l heard and felt some one in the
room. Whoever it was could not have
slipped over or under the Stat door. He
must have entered by the window. He
was searching about for my clothes
when | called out that if he moved
hand or foot | would shoot. and l then
| began to crawl from under the bed.
When | struck light had the room
| to myself,
| | didn't sit down and wonder if |
| hadn't been deceived | knew hadn't,
That so"np ore lad .heen in the rcoIa
proved witain TIVE minutes. That some
oAe had loa, 4 little list shoe generally
called a sH@"k, 1t was too small for
any mans foot. 1t meant a woman or
boy. went down to the Office and re-
ported to the night clerk. and together
| we visited little Mrs ratteu's room
she did hot respond to the knocks. but
| that was because she wasn't there. She
| had left most Of her wardrobe behind
and had gone away dressed rs a young
man, taking only hand satchel.
| Clear across the rear end of the hotel
| ran balcony Oh every floor Two fire