Norwich bulletin., 1917-01-05
A BIT OF DETECTIVE WORK

in our town lately. too," the out OF
| town customer said. They haven't
added to our business any to speak of,
but they livened things UP a bit, and
/ they have given US good deal OF
| trouble with their petty thieving. OF
| course / don't mean that the circus
people were robbers, but the hang
: erS-on were, especially the pickpockets
i from other Cities
| People who live in glass houses bet
| ter throw nothing but pillows" laugh
| ed Wilkinson. Don't you dare blame
all those piclxpockets on us! You
have some of your own, remember"
customer said but they were there
1t made a good many folk rather sus-
picioHs of everybody who was strange
to the town. We are still small
enough to know almost every resident
OF the county, SO that strangers need
to be careful. heard a man in the
barber shop telling of his experience
pawnshop. OF course we have all
known Morris for years, though we
haven't many of US had personal deal
ings with him"
FOf course" Wilkinson said seri-
ously. "A pawnbroker isn't exactly
popular
well, this pawnbroker chap whom
overheard was saying that couple
of rather well dressed men came in
one morning to sell a hat. He runs
a second hand store in connection with
lis other business and he buys every
thing under the sun. The one who
panama and was suspiciously well
groomed. He looked mighty slick and
the hat he was selling was almost new.
Morris said he never was so sure that
a thing had been stolen as he was
when he saw those two slick custom
ers putting up the bluff that they
didn't want to take the hat home with
tt EN- because they had small trunks
that were full to the brim already"
Sounds f1shy, all right said Will
kinson.
TT surely does" the customer went
on. "Of course, he didn't say any
thing-at the time, but as soon as the
men had gone out he signaled to a
plain clothes man who was on the cor
ner to follow them. The officer I'M
derstood by the signals that Norris
suspected the men of having stolen a
hat and he sailed off after them with
great eagerness."
'sDid they look Hike tough custom
ers?"
mo, indeed! That was what made
Morris suspicious. They looked so
licve it wasn't acting, in view of the
thieving that had been going on"
Did your detective make out
c. ?"
'sWe11, sir. that poor plain clothes
man worked for hours chasing after
those two chaps, for they certainly
led him a dance. They actually went
to the conference, but he could not
see that they picked a single pocket,
tt ough he was mighty careful to
watch them well. Then they hiked
way over to the other side of town
and walked through the only slums
we have, but the detective said they
didn't go into single house nor
speak to a soul.
'tHe said he supposed they knew
they were being followed and had sig
nailed to their pals to lay low. They
also visited the stores and they saw
all the sights in town, and it was 8
o'clock that evening before he got
their number. They had dinner at the
hotel and went over to the conference,
where they evidently expected to get
rich pickings. The detective was
right behind them when one
of them was called on to speak,"
ITO speak?"
"Sure thing" said the out Of town
customer. They were both of them
Methodist bishops attending the con-