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The Chief Librarian and the soap thieves

Sun Soap illustration with smiling sun
28 November 2019

In 1887, Chief Librarian Thomas Bride found himself with a vexing problem: someone was stealing soap from the Library's public rest rooms.

Determined to catch the offenders, Bride sent Library attendant Arthur Barber undercover to make an arrest. Barber was such a successful detective, he caught three different thieves stealing the same piece of soap on three different occasions.

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