Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 164, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 July 1912 — Kleptomania [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Kleptomania

By Donald Allen

(Copyright, VO. by Associated Literary Press.) . An event to he much talked about In society and another to cause chatter from the seventh floor to the basement at Maxim & Co.’s department store, occurred the same week. The first was (he announcement of the engagement of Miss Edith Lisle to Mr. Eugene Nevlns, who was one of the partners of the store, and society agreed that It was a fine match. Society refers to those things the same way men refer to horses In a race. The second event was the general overhauling of the store detectives and ifiany of the sales girls, on account of the sudden increase In shoplifting. Laser and other valuable goods not the usual prey of the shoplifter were being taken In a way to make the loss a serious one and so call for Increased vlgllanoe. Maxim & Co. had the reputation of carrying the finest line of laces In the city. There were four salesgirls in this department, and the one In charge was Miss Grattan. She had held her place for nearly a year when the first theft was reported. The first and second cases were passed over, but when the third was reported Miss Grattan "was placed under suspicion. It was Mr. Nevlns who set (he watch on her, and It was to Mr. Nevlns that the report was made later on. "Lives with her widowed" mother"; goes out very little and then with Mr. Traver, of the furniture department. It is said that they are engaged. If she takes the lace, she sells It somewhere. Cannot say that suspicion should attach to any one of the four at the lace counter.” In the line of business Mr. Nevlns had once called Miss Grattan to the office. She had not trembled and cowered In his presence. On the contrary, she had seemed too assured and snippy to please him. There must be discipline In department stores, and when an employe is before the powers that be, he or she Is expected to act as If life was at stake. As Miss Grattan didn’t, Mr. Nevlns was displeased with her. In the general overhauling Miss Grattan came first. Lace to the

value of S2OO had been taken from her department two days before. There had been a rush at her counter all day, mostly of weß-dreSsed women. There had been scores and scores of sales. There had been scores who did not buy. The salesgirls must not- only handle the stock, but answer questions, record sales, keep their eyes open and look upon every customer with suspicion, and feel that some one of those customers might be a shoplifter, and there to pot the four In peril of losing their places. Mr. Nevlns realised all this, but he made no excuses for Miss Grattan, nor permitted her to make any for herself. "There Is slacknes there or these things could not happen,” he said. "A smart girl can tell a shoplifter half way across the store. If there is any more stealing from your counter I shall be obliged to transfer you to the crookery department” There were three store detectives, all noted for their smartness, and yet they could not "tell a shoplifter half way across the store,” nor yet ten feet aWay. Miss Grattan took It rightly that she "was marked down,” hut she returned to her counter resolved to watch with more vlgllanoe than ever. In the big stores they do not make the mistake of watching what may be called the common folks to the exclusion of all others. What the oommon folks take is called stealing; what the wealthy take goes under the head of kleptomania. Both are watched alike. Four days after tit talk fat the office, Mias Grattan had a customer for high-prioed lace. She was a young woman of about twenty-two, who had oome in her ante, and die had a full purse and bought liberally and took away her package. ' She was Watched, and yet ten minutes after She had gone a valuable piece of lace was missing. The most that oould he found out about her wps that she had frequently been In the store mad fi»f< |h( paid oash never her purchases seat. The lom had to ba reported to Mr. Hevtu. He did aot .. . ... . - _ - " ',v <?

transfer Miss Grattan to the crockery department, as he had threatened. He was evidently about to do so, when something she said in describing the customer she suspected made him hesitate and take on a puzzled look, and.after a time to remark: _ _ "After you have taken stock tonig&t you may find the missing lace. At any rate, let It go for a day or two.” . . V..J suspect her, and was he going to have her watched? Was he going to have her mother's house searched? Yes, Miss Grattan was engaged to Mr. Traver, the head of the furniture department; hut the fact had not been publicly announced. These engagements seldom appear In the society Journals. It’s two dr three days off under protest—a marriage, a fiat and then one hears no more. It may he spoken of In the Btore for a day, but only by employes. On the evening of the last theft mentioned the matter was talked over between the lovers. Mr. Traver was a man of action. He had a slater who was not known at the store, and next day she was a customer at the lace counter. She didn't make a purchase, hut she kept her 4yes open. The next day she was at the glove counter. On the next she was back at the lace counter. Perhaps one of the store detectiveß became suspicious and followed her about for a time; perhaps one of the four girls at the lace counter hoped to find her shoplifting and see her punished. She was there, undetermined whether * to buy or not when the young lady of the auto swept Into the store and up to the counter. She wap gracious and patronizing. She wanted expensive lace to send to a girl friend In the oountry. Miss Grattan waited on her and watched her. —Never had she watched a cubtomer so closely. Miss Traver suspended her buying to leave the store and order a public auto to wait In front of it. At the end of half an hour her quarry came out and entered her own auto and speeded away. She was followed and her residence located. She had not left the store above a quarter of an hour when the whitefaced and shaking Miss Grattan was up in the office reporting to Mr. Nevlns; “The young lady whom I suspected a few days ago came for more lace today and bought |SO worth. She had hardly gone when I missed five yards valued at more than that” "H’m! You will apply for your salary this evening. We can no longer afford to keep you here. The other day, when I told you to wait a hit, I thought I had a clue to solve the problem; but It seems that I was mistaken. I shall transfer the other girls to the crockery department. The four of you are a careless lot, but you are the worst.” An hour later Mr. Traver asked for a word with Mr. Nevlns. “If it’s about Miss Grattan, I don’t wish to hear it,” was the answer. "But It isn’t. It’s about the shoplifter at the lace counter. I know her apd know her place of residence.” “You—you do!” "And if you get out a search warrant before she can mall away the lace she lifted this afternoon it will be found In her house. My sister followed her today." Mr. Nevlns bent forward on hls desk and hid hls face In his hands, and it was three long minutes before he raised it to Bay: “I —I suspected—l knew, but I didn’t want any one else to know. You and Miss Grattan are engaged. Please go, both of you. Your wedding gift from' the firm will be enough to set you up in business You see, Miss —Miss Lisle is a kleptomaniac, and I can’t —can’t —" And hls face was in his bands again when Mr. Traver softly withdrew. Society wondered and by and by forgot

"There Is Slackness There."