The Washington times., 1919-10-05


most bFazen acts of Americas mae
ter criminal To-day there win Be given
more details Of this master roBus's latest
adventures in ailk piracy.
Almost alI the six used D. the United
States. millions and millions of yards ol
every year comes originally from either
Japan or China4-moat o. it from Japan.
lt IS in these two Oriental countries the
silk worm fouriahes. skilful Oriental
hands pack the raw SIX in bales. Weighing
nom 100 20 200 pounds. Wrap @ in japan
ese OF Chinese fashion aud load h onto
special steamers That carry it % San Eran-
cisco on Seattle. whence it is brought-ln
special trains across the continent % New
York The largest centre for the impora-
ton and resale Of finished silks in The
world
Near New York City there ere the
worlds greatest mills and looms where
the raw material from the East is manu-.
faetured into the cloths which later ere
fashioned into the countless garments that
women IKE to have made o. their laVoTite
ccIors and patterns of iuslrcIuI silks.
Two years ago serious thtttE Of G.ls
were almost unknoWu. Occasionally
factory or 6 NH would De robbed cf rem
nauta 81 few pounds of ne unmguu-
laciured material o. neglected TRIMMINGS
Wcula disappear from The benches ol the
WnrlmHn. bat that was alI thar bothered
tie dealers d SIX. To-day the annual loss
% fhs dealers in SIX In lhc United states
from theft reaches more than lo10.0o0.
For the master criminal bee entered the
dcld. as was told last week o. thiG Dage.
and his mysterious orgauiEat'on nl tha
worlds most cunning criminal minds has
even gone 90 Ear as % build up 9 ven for
titled chain of mills and stores devoted
Wholly % the preparation and sale of tie
stolen goods
Eighteen times within the last SIX
months according % Ramsey PeuEnst.
secretary ol the SIX Association, one of
the principal ueutenanil Of the master
criminal has been arrested with what
seemed to Be f0rceful evidence against
him Of his connection with daring rob
berries amounting 20 almost two million
dollars. But each time the organization
was powerful enough 20 save him.
When the master criminal began 10 look
toward the silk feldH g holding out
promise Of great Illicit profits he disc0F-
cred these circumstances, not generally
known to the public, governing the indus
try which be proposed % raid with hig or
ganizati0n Of able thieves
An silk Is much alike when &c arrives
IN this country from Japan and China.
The product Of the silk worms is packed
in the peculiar Oriental way and wrapped
20 the Standardized bales It was not
guarded then On its way across the conti-
nent from the Pacific ocean 10 New York.
except By the usual force Of tFainmen.
When it arrived in New York It was un-
loaded onto great trucks at the railroad
fr---f~a.Tu rora the r1ufra NJ the fhrrrfunun
section Of the city and carted through busy
streets to the storerooms Of the great silk
importers 70 whom # had been sent
When the importers had checked over
their shipments and counted the bales de-
Hvered them the silk bales again we're
placed on trucks and sent to warehouses
In the lower section Of the city. Before
this raw silk became manufactured into
the yards Of shiny materials which the
general public know as "silk" q passes
from place 70 place, always loaded on
great commercial trucks, eighteen times.
u Is IN transit" from one place to an
other this many times. During these var
i0us trips It must leave the warehouses,
visit the testers" the "c0nditioners," the
adyeFs, the 'throWsteTs' the "threaders,"
the "Wsavers.F the "hnishers" the exam
iners,H and, az last, the "iobbers" and @re-
tsilers," who help distribute It to its final
purchasers.
In these "eighteen transits" the master
criminal discovered eighteen opportunities
e steal any bale Of raw silk that might
arrive In this country from Japan or
China. BE found, too. that a bale Of raw
SIX, as well as a bolt Of manufactured
six, could be sold with almost ss much
ease and profit as could raw or manufac-
tured gold.
Late last Nay q great ocean freight
liner dOcked az San Francisco and dis
charged a cargo Of raw silk from Japan.
Soon the whole cargo was aboard its spec.
ial train and bound for the Atlantic coast.
there to be divided among fhe mills by its
importers. BY DoW the SILK Association
had discovered that the only way 20 pro-
tect such shipments IS these, even IN
special trains, was 30 place % each car q
squad Of heavily armed men, There we're
seTenty-dye OF these guards on the whole
train. Watch was kept night and day.
Before this guard vas detailed TO every
train whole car loads OF six disappeared
en- route-caFs we're cut Oh from the train
n shipping yards; once g train was
wrecked deliberately and On t8e confusion
hundreds Of bales were carried away The
shipment therefore arrived safely in New
York loF the master criminal daring IS
he is, does not take chances that ere IN.
possible % overcome