William Dean Howells 
Garotters 

In The Garotters, another of William Dean Howells’ "farces, " or short comic plays, protagonist Mr. Roberts arrives home with a tale of horror, tragedy and ultimate triumph — his beloved watch was stolen by a despicable thief, but he bravely pursued the criminal and retrieved the stolen loot. However, Roberts soon finds that his act of courage was not quite as courageous as he believed.