Thefts Rattle Sedate World of Rare Maps.

Reports that E. Forbes Smiley III was charged with larceny in the first degree when he removed from a book in the Beinecke Library at Yale an antique map valued by the university at $150,000. Discovery of a fragile map from a book by Capt. John Smith in Mr. Smiley's inside jacket pocket; Appearance of other maps, worth more than $700,000, in Mr. Smiley's briefcase; Claim by Mr. Smiley that he is not guilty and that the maps were his and that he was simply comparing them to others at the library; Reference to embarrassing incidents at other prestigious and elite collections.