TAKEN AND RETURNED.

Northern Advocate, 21 October 1920, Page 2

TAKEN AND RETURNED.

STEAMBOAT PILFERING

A CASE OF CUTENESS,

Loss of luggage is a mishap incidental to travelling and consequently a good many missing articles are relegated to th c category of justlost property. There arise, however, cases in which the loss to the owner is brought about by deliberate activity pf another party, and one such occurred last night on the Manaia. It happened that Mr. J. D. McKenzie, before he went to his cabin, pladed a wallet containing money in a hip-pocket of his trousers, which he. then rolled up and placed in the rack alongside the bunk.

When he awoke in the morning he found that his companion in the cabin, who was already asleep when Mr. McKenzi e retired, was Inspector Cahill, who mentioned that'he was on the look-out for perpetrators of •petty thefts on th e boat. Thereupon Mr. McKenzie sought to assure himself of his wisdom in taking particular precautions with his wallet, for which he felt—and did not find. The inspector immediately made a complete search of the cabin, looking under the pillows and carefully shaking eyery blanket, but there was no trace of it. The chief steward was Summoned and an inquiry instituted, but th c wallet was not forthcoming. Mr. McKenzie and the inspector came to Whangarei by the morning boat train, and the former had made up ris mind that he would not recover his ppeket-book or the money in it. However, th c midday train brought the missing wallet back to its owner. It had been found under the pillow of the re-made bunk in which Mr. McKenzie had slept. Apparently the thief suspected trouble for himself at the way in which the inspector set about solving the problem, and thought it better to return the stolen property rather than risk discovery. It was impossible that the wallet had been under the pillow all the while.

Mr. McKenzie's case is not an isolated one in which petty thieving has taken place on the ferry steamers,, and there have been instances cited of luggage having been lost which left more than a suspicion that what was one man's loss was another man's gain. In such eases the thieves have not restored their haul as they did in the case of Mr. McKenzie—probably due to the presence of Inspector Cahill,