The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1909-12-29
CRIME in FOES.
When the London Crooks Reap
a Rich Harvest.

the criminal 1t means the opportunity
of reaping harvest, said a detective
to the Tit-Blts man during the recent
fog. Fogs are perfect godsends to
thieves, and burglars would like them
to last forever. The fog not only rem
ders his chance Of obtaining booty
much greater, but reduces those Of his
being caught to minimum.
During foggy weather householders
cannot take too many precautions.
The gentleman known as a casual
buster" is very busy at this time of
the year. This is the slang term ap-
piled to a kind of second-rate house
breaker-one who works entirely
without plan, but prowls round a like
ly district trusting to chance for an
opportunity to "touch," which with
him means "take." He keeps a sharp
| lookout for such trifles as an un-
| latched window or carelessly Sc
cured door, which may afford him an
easy entry.
The latter is essential, for, as a
rule, he carries few "tools;" police
men on night duty are apt to be sus-
picious of shabbily dressed men who
are out too late, or too early, as the
case may be, and housebreaking i'm
plements are SO distinctive that they
insure conviction for any one who Is
| found carrying them. But on foggy
nights he can take fuller outfit,
tc 90 4 l,t.
enemy, and he is altogether bolder in
| his methods, because IL the house
which he takes for dead 'un"-an
| Inhabited house left unprotected
proves to contain inmates his escape
| Is a matter of little difficulty. This
| type of burglar never attempts vio-
| lence unless cornered, and it may
comfort timid people to know that q
| noise which shows that he has dis
| turbed the inmates Is quite sufficient
to make him beat a hasty retreat.
Needless to say, perhaps, the "casual
buster" is looked down upon and even
| despised by the expert "cracksman,"
whose work Is always the outcome of
carefully prepared plan, and who,
when he Cracks a crib" be u
house, shop, or bank, knows ex-
| actly what he expects to get and
where to look for It. Even this artist,
| however, does not disdain to make use
OF the advantages foggy night
offers, and many big burglaries are
planned accordingly for this time of
the year.
Offenses which would entail almost
certain capture in fair weather be-
come comparatively easy Of accom-
plishment in fog. Robbery with
violence from the person is one OF
these. The criminal, shod with rub
ber-soled shoes, is able to approach
and take his prey entirely by surprise,
and ere a sound can be uttered he is
Nsandbagged, or half choked, and his
pockets emptied. Even should the
victim manage to cry out, by the time
a possible hearer has located the di-
rection the assailant will have van
tshed in the mist.
Another class of rogue whom the
fog befriends is that terror of Jewell
ers, the window smasher. So far as
appearance goes, one might take him
for an ordinary mechanic or laborer
returning from work, with his dinner
can slung in handkerchief. But
what the latter really contains is the
better half of brick, which, at mo-
ment when the fog is thickest and
passersby few, is hurled into select
ed window. The result is a large
hole, through which the thief grabs
a handful of the valuables within and
decamps. So frequent have these
thefts become that many jewellers now
protect their wares by means of steel
latticeworlf.
Under ordinary conditions picking
pockets is an art requiring long prac-
tice, but in a fog the veriest amateur
may at least try his hand with i'm
punity, since, unless caught and held
IN the very act, he is almost sure to
escape. Moreover, the condition of
the atmosphere offers abundant ex-
cuse for humping into folk, an acci-
dent OF which even clumsy pilferer
can take advantage. The prevailing
fashion among the fair sex of carrying
their purses in handbags is one that
lays them specially open to robbery,
and a number of thieves who are not
clever enough to pick pockets make
living by simply snatching these bags
and boiling. Since this is often done
with success in broad daylight, it may
be imagined how easy it is in fog.
Another thing, always distrust the
man-no matter what his appearance
may be--who asks you the time on a
foggy night. 1t is an old thieves
trick, which is still made use of. At
glance an experienced "prig" can
see If your timepiece is worth the risk
of taking, and If it is he will snatch
1t and bolt. Since he has probably
marked you down" and followed you
to spot which Offers him an easy
means of escape, your chance of
catching him is practically nil. Even
should you succeed in doing so the
booty will, in most cases, have been
passed to confederate, who has gone
in another direction, so that you have