The Hartford republican., 1913-11-28
THEFTS IN HOTELS
Traps to Catch Guests That Have
the Souvenir Fad.
DETECTIVES AND DIPLOMACY.

The Two Combine In a Very Effective
Way to Foil the Efforts Of Those Who
Feel II Duty to Help Themselves
to Fine Linen and SiIverware.
The concerted action Of the house de.
tectives Of all the large hotels in Amer.
lea hac carefully extracted the points
from two erstwhile excellent stories.
the first, ascribed to Adele Ritchie.
who. when asked once IL she had ever
beeu In Kansas City, replied, II can't
juet remember, but ! will look among
my towels and see," and the second
the more pathetic narrative of the
young man who was obliged to break
nff his engagement because as he left
The dining room Of a large hotel with
his fiancee a number of forks and
spoons fell from the sleeves of her
gown. for the house detectives have
devised system whereby the man
or woman who wants to take q souve.
mir from big hotel finds her path be.
set with almost insurmountable diff
culties.
The matter Is carried on with the
greatest artfulness. There are no
hurt feelings" no bones broken, no
arrests made.
The house detectives simply extract
the unrightfully attached articles as
painessly as they extract the points
from old stories. and I'm the great Ma
jority Of cases the frustrated ."bOrrow-
er" never knows at all what happened
to him.
First the detective is provided with
complete list of everything which Is
owned by the hotel-every particle Of
linen. silver. soap. etc. Then he dele
gates the responsibility for the care of
them to various head walters, walters.
housekeepers and chambermaids.
Then he gets list each day of new
arrivals and Of those who having re-
mained u few days are preparing to
leave. From these lists OF occupied
rooms the detective calculates the
areas where trouble might possibly
brew and into these he goes with his
subdivided lists and a checking I'D
book
The chambermaid Is required to give
IN exact accounting OF every piece Of
linen she has supplied TO the man or
woman who Ia about to leave. This is
n turn taken to the laundries. where a
balance In made Of those sheets, towels,
ETC.. which have come out of each
Dom. II there Is precise balance the
natter ends there. but woe to the wO-
nan who believes that the towels she
placed carefully in her locked trunk
will not be missed"
Her trunks and bags on their way
downstairs are simply carried to the
basement floor as IL by chance. and
there the house detective. with the aid
or skeleton key. goes through them
In search of lost hotel linen.
1t Is very gently removed and check.
ed up on the hOusemaid's list. and the
trunk Is carefully repacked and re-
locked. Nothing is left to give warn.
Ing that the search has been made.
and nothing Is ever by any remotest
chance said to the departing guest.
She is sent cheerily, on her way re-
ioicing and Is usually perplexed ont of
all reason to account for the fact that
the towels and pillow cases that she
knows well she put into her trunk
have mysteriously disappeared.
DO you suppose for moment that
this is an extreme case nor even a
rare one? It happens on an average
once a day I'm every large hotel in
New York and with almost as astound.
Ing frequency I'm Boston. Philadelphia
and Chicago.
And In the case of silverware the
matter Is almost ms simple. though
remedying these thefts requires taking
into your confidence at least the man
who pays the bin. for every waiter has
had his eye trained to count. mp the sill.
vcrware while he is placing the finger
bowls, and II SO much as one small
spoon Is not where II should be t Is
nnostentatlously placed upon the Bill |
The hotel graciously leaves It to the
discretion Of the escort MS to whethe, !
or not the culprit shall be told. But at
least II does not permit him to be en-
lightened only by the belated method
Of ;eexy sleeve.
Again. the head waiter will assure
sou that this happens. not once or
twice. but ceaselessly.
MANY woman that thinks she's |
got away with It would be surprised to
know that II Is down In black and |
white on her escorts check and that |
both he and the hotel know just how |
many spoons and forks she II taking |
home with her." said one genial head
waiter. who viewed the business with |
considerable Indulgence. New Yort |
Times