The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-07-10
BY CLAUDINE sIssoN.

department store of Moses Il VAIN
right. Therefore. Miss Cleo heard
much shop talk. About the only
thing that interested her. however.
was the talk about shopiifters. The
store was constantly troubled with
,hem, and 1T was only at long in
tertals that one was caught. although
"A store detective was supposed to
have her eyes everywhere.
one night when the manager came
home to say that goods worth two
hundred dollars had been lifted that
day from under the nose Of the store
watchdog, who was young woman
OF 20. and that she would be dts
charged at the end of the week. Miss
| tone: %
Il am a natural born detective"
A laugh greeted the words.
II have solved several difficult
cases"
More laughing.
"A year ago, when this diamond
ring was suddenly missing, father and
mother said 1t was a case that would
never be solved. After devoting one
day to thought / walked into tho
kitchen and told the cook she was
the thief. She broke down at once"
THAT Is. -shA- confessed -. said Mr..
Marshall.
| No, she did not confess. She turn
ed red and white and burst into tears
and within an hour she skipped out"
| And the ring?'
Il found 1t on the shelf over my
lavatory. She. of course, had placed it
there on finding that she was sus-
pected. Father said the police couldn't
have worked the case better
| "keenest, brightest thing I ever
heard orr ranljnA me. yaa
we only had you in the store we
could fill police station with shop
lifters inside OF week"
| The natural born detective felt
hurt at the words and would say no
more, although invited to relate some
of her other cases. Her mind had
Instantly been made up to a certain
/ thing. however. and next day she
proceeded to carry her plan into ex-
ecuuon. With no hint to her sister.
who would oppose It. she made her
way TO the store Of Moses x VAIN
/ right. She wanted TO get an eye on
the afternoon shoppers. She had a
! feeling that she could tell a shop
/ litter on sight. The criminal might
J be a well-dressed woman with dia-
monds IN her ears. and she might
pretend to be at ease, but there would
be furtive look-a something in
/ Acoh v GNaih I'd Elfs n6E away.
/ Miss Cleo passed from counter to
! She spotted and followed two or
three about. but they seemed to re-
ceive mysterious warning and kept
/ hands of. There was one old dame
who might have pocketed three yards
of lace II she hadn't looked up and
caught the girls eye on her. Miss
Cleo finally retired from the store
with the feeling that II she had caused
no arrest she had at least frightened
number Of shoppers into being hon
est At dinner that evening she didn't
feel SO self-sattsfied. however. Mr.
Marshall reported that never had tho
shopltfters been 80 busy. There had
been no less than seven cases right
under the noses Of the brightest
salesgirls
Should that report discourage a
natural born detective7 Not In the
slightest. It should stimulate her to
greater exertions. That's what II did
In Miss Cleo Gates case. She had
been put on her mettie and she would
astonish her brother in-law and 9th
ers. Very few good-iooking young
women who have set out to astonish
folks have made a failure of II. IL
was back to the store the next after
noon for Miss Cleo. A bright thought
struck her as she crossed the thresh-
old, From all she had read and
heard the shopliftlng business was
confined to her sex. The store de-
tective had her eye on the women.
Why not watch the men?
Miss Cleo saw young man saun-
tering about. She first noticed that
he was well dressed and had a fair
face: then she saw he was looking
about in what she considered q fur
tive. way. Then he Walked up 20 the
jewelrv show case and drummed on
the glass. Then he went over 10
the perfumery counter and asked the
price OF a bottle OF cologne. Thence
he walked to the door and looked up
and down. as II to see whether there
was policeman about or not. Being
satisfied on this point. he walked
back to the book counter, picked IN
one book after another. and finally
walked Off with one in his hand az
bold as brass. 1t was a valuable
book.
Miss Cleo should have stepped for
ward at this moment and laid her
/ heavy hand on the shopfffted and
made an arrest, but her heart failed
fHr. He would deny and resist. She
would Let him go and trail him and
then report to her brother in-law
She hadn't far to trail. With a quick
glance up and down the street, the
young man crossed. At the entrance
to stairway he paused moment
to look back, and then climbed the
stairs. The girl had the criminal
run to earth. She re-entered the
store. was taken up to the manager
office, and astonished him by an
nouncing:
George. ] have been doing detec-
tive work downstairs unbeknown to
You or Sarah, and l have caught a
shoplifter. He may be the head of
the gang"
You don't tell me! Where is he 90
II didn't want to create excitement
In the store. and SO I trailed him to
his lair"
Good girl! Where Is it?"
| Right across the road and up
fstafrs. He can be arrested in five
minutes"
"You'H have to come along and
point him out"
"Oh. IN do that"
At the store doors they picked up
a detective. When the trio had cross
ed the street and the stairway had
been pointed out Mr.. Marshall said
to the girl:
There are a dozen offices UP there
and q studio or two, and we mustn't
hungle this case Sure you can iden-
I tfy your man again ?"
I'm an instant"
81 can't believe that any OF these
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