Daily Arizona silver belt., 1910-02-20
Stray Topics from
 Little Old New York

NEW YORK, February 19.-Certain crimes of bold and daring nature have always been considered man s exclusive prerogative. It was the general belief that woman lacked the courage and brazenness required for such crimes as highway robbery, burglary and acts of similar nature. Recent events have clearly shown, however, that this belief, like so many of the ideas of the anti suffragettes, rested upon an under-esti- nation of woman $ ability It plainly reflects credit upon woman s astuteness that two crafty women succeeded in robbing banker of a large sum of money while he was walking along a much frequented street. The other day the two women, in broad daylight, en- tered fashionable apartment on West 151st street while the occupants were absent, gathered up $150 in cash and jewels and silverware valued at 5000, and escaped, walking past the janitress carrying their plunder under their bulg- ing capes.
 What makes the two women daring even more remarkable is, that while they were in the apartment, robbing the place, the owner unexpectedly returned, | without being able to scare away the thieves. They had locked themselves in and kept their key in the lock on the inside, thus making it impossible for the owner or the ianitor to open | the door. The owner never suspected that there were thieves in his apart | but hal hof +hara thing wrong with the lock. He left <he house for a short time, visiting with his married daughter, and during his absence the two thieves unlocked the door and, carrying their plunder under their cloaks, walked down the stairs, past the janitress and out of the house. No trace of them has been found
 At one of the city high schools a prize contest in short story writing was arranged some time ago and many of the boys and girls submitted their lit erary efforts. One of the boys, with a defective ethical sense, had the audac- ity of copying clever short story by o. Henry, the well known writer, and | submitting it as his own work. That | the fraud was not immediately detected and the plaglarist exposed IS strange enough but it is far more puzzling that the "cribbed" story was awarded sec ond prize. There are only two explana- tions possible of this remarkable deci- sion of the teachers constituting the prize jury. Either the story turned in by the boy who was awarded the first prize had actually greater literary mer- it than the one written by MT. Henry, which is highly improbable, or the jury did not know the difference between a good and poor, or at least inferior, story. The latter explanation is un- doubtedly correct and reflects discredit upon the literary taste and qualified. tions of the teachers.
 The last meal at Rector $, the famous old hostelry on Times Square, has been served and the numerous patrons of that renowned establishment will have to seek other pastures until the New Rector's s is opened about December 15, of the present year. The present build ing will be torn down and in its place a fine structure, seventeen stories high, will be erected. Mir. Rector will start for. Europe shortly for the purpose of buying linen, silverware and other res.