The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1913-09-04
:
(AnswsrG.)

The secret service Of Lloyd's does
not advertise itself, yet it plays nc
small part In defeating the subtle ma
chinations of the clever swindlers
who, every. now ana again. try to
cheat the great insurance companies.
son who have reason to understand
the a%stuteness and efficiency Of
:Lloyd's detectives.
Lloyi's as everyone knows, is a
combination Of the great insurance
companies, and for them the necessity
of q corps Of detectives is evident.
They have their emissaries in every
great city in the world. Sometimes
they work hand-in-glove with oficial
police detectives, as when the recent
robbery Of a fl30,000 pearl necklace
took place. Sometimes they prefer
their methods.
In London, LIoyi's secret service
men number half a dozen or less; and
But their ultimate aim is rather diff
ferent from that Of the police. In
these days Of insurance almost every
robbery is a matter Of concern to
Lloyd's. They are the people who
pay. Consequently, II 1t becomes a
matter Of choice, they would rather
regain. possession Of stolen goods. be
they jewelry. gold plate. gems or pic
lures. than have the thief caught and
both arrest the thief and get the stol-
en- articles. back, we'll and good.
An ingenius fraud was recently re-
vealed by n Of their number. A
Scotswoman moving in good society
bought q pearl necklace and insured 1t
for $4,000. OF course, the necklace
was examined by experts to make GER
tain that 1t was Of the declared value.
But the lady had her plan all cut ana
dried. She had q necklace made-an
exact imitation, the value of which
was probably only a pound or two
and quietly sold the real one. Then
One day the necklace was snatched
from her neck by a street rufian in
a Scottish town. The thief got
clean away.
But when the claim Of $4,000 was
put in the detectives were not alto
sether satisfied. To them it seemed
strange that such a valuable necklace
should be worn in the open street.
III insurance company made a pre-
claim, and inquiries were quietly
jeweler. a detective was shown a
necklace which he instantly recog-
nized as the n supposed to have
been stolen.
Where did you get it," he de-
manded.
"oh. that was left here by a
Mrs: '". who was. I suppose. hard
up" answered the other.
The name given was different from
that. OF the owner Of the necklace, but
detective produced = photograph
frnfn; .hfa nocknt
IT'S that the woman who sold it to
You :" he asked.
t. The shopkeeper nodded.
Within five minutes the wires wee
at work, ana the lady was under ar
rest. The coincidence that she could
possess two pearl necklaces exactly
alike was too remarkable. It turned
out that her husband had played the
part OF III street thief. and at their
to penal servitude.
In. the ONCE Of a Arm Of assessors
to Lloyd's near the bank there re-
poses on a mantelpiece a partly burn
ed wooden clock, which brought a
cunning rascal to jail.
This mar had insured a country
house ana its contents for some thou
sands Of pounds. Ultimately a letter
reached the insurance company, stat
ing that the place had been burned
down. and preferring a claim. The
letter. wa handed to the assessors,
and in company with a detective. a
member Of the firm went down to in
spect the ruins. .
The insured mans story was plausi-
BILE enough. His FAMILY and servants
had left for the holidays. He him
self had stayed behind for a little to
see the house locked up. When he
left at = quarter to four everything
was, all right.
"H'm!" said the detective. what
train did you catch? /" -.
The. four-twenty-hve. left here
It. quarter to+. I particularly no.
And you're sure the house wasn't
on fre when you left it,"
Absolutely certain"
gsrly across the ruins ana picked up
Did you see your time by your
watch or q clock?" he asked.
by the oak clock. in the dining
This is an oak clock" said the de-
And then significantly: ut
has stopped at minutes past 81"
The clock was the main piece Of
evidence against the man when ne
look his trial for attempted fraud.
Cases in which murder is suspected
Tor the sake Of insurance money are
left entirely to the Official no.
But the more willy rogues invent
opportunities. which permit them to
getting the money without run
ming the risk Of the gallows.
An instance Of this sort occurred