He does not trouble
himself about any amount of _probabilities_ that the detectives may
accumulate against him; but the said detective must be remarkably acute
if he is ever able to get anything against him which will amount to
strictly legal proof.
CHAPTER XLI.
PICKPOCKETS.
Strangers coming to New York should always be on the watch for
pickpockets, and even natives are not careful enough in this respect.
Picking pockets has been reduced to a science here, and is followed by
many persons as a profession. It requires long practice and great
skill, but these, when once acquired, make their possessor a dangerous
member of the community. Women, by their lightness of touch and great
facility in manipulating their victims, make the most dangerous
operators in the city. The ferry boats, cars, stages, crowded halls,
and public places afford the best opportunities to pickpockets for the
exercise of their skill.
A lady, riding in an omnibus, discovers that she has lost her purse,
which she knows was in her possession when she entered the stage. A
well-dressed gentleman sits by her, whose arms are quietly crossed
before him, and his fingers, encased in spotless kid gloves, are
entwined in his lap, in plain sight of all the passengers, who are sure
that he has not moved them since he entered the stage.
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