THE BURGLARY PLAGUE IN LONDON.

Kumara Times, Issue 1357, 5 February 1881, Page 2

THE BURGLARY PLAGUE IN LONDON.

The London correspondent of the New York Times says ;—“The burglary plague Iras broken oiit again with fresh force. The season has cotrimettced' very prettily, indeed, with two terrific conflicts with housebreakers in the southern subflrbs of London; In one a brave young policeman lay iii teait for a burglar whom he saw getting over a wall, secured him, was fired at three times, and-was at last knocked .down, insensible by the fellow’s confederate, * In the other a young gentleman was awakened at night by the movements of a man who had got into His room} and whom hfe courageously tackled; firing at him with a revolver, and; it is believed, wounding him. Numbers of other biirglars, not less audacious,", are reported from other parts of the metropolis, arid in no case have we heard of the capture of the robbers. Of course; as usual; there is an Outdry against >the police, and equally, of course, the pdlicc i-etort that it is all the fault of the householders, who carelessly Ifedve. doors and windows unfdstened or riot properly secured, or engage servants without looking closely enough into their antecedents: This last itaritb of precaution nd doubt iri a fruitful cause pf rdbbery. It is unquestionably the fact that a regular system is fibw carried on by which accomplices of theives, both male and female, are enabled to* obtain wealthy families by. means df falser written ‘characters:’ Jfc; friend..of mine, not long ago,.was btiastipg that he had secured .one of the best servants ' he ever had—a capital cook; fi hard worker, and in all other respects satis : factory. She had a first-rate cHaraCtei’ with her from a lady in Belgravia,. whd wrote it on . the kept of note, paper; stamped with her address and crest. After this model servant had been in her place a few weeks, an accident reVealed the unfortunate fact, that just b’6fdre taking the situation she had completed her. third or fourth term of imprisdirihent for theft, and there was reason 16 believe that she was supplying a gang of burglars with information that would enable them to break into and rob the Jibiioe at the first convenient opportunity. Of course, I need hardly add that the * lady in Belgravia’ who furnished the ‘ character’ was a myth, the house in which she teas supposed to reside being—well; hot the abode of one of the ‘ upper errisk’^