Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1888-03-22
GEMS ON MEMORANDUM.
a Habit That Has Long Been I'm sosu
Among Diamond Dealers.


a Habit That Has Long Been i'm Vogue
Among Diamond Dealers.
An Item appeared few days ago
announcing that Inspector Byrnes'
men were looking for young diamond
broker who had obtained large
quantity of diamonds from Maiden
lane firm ION memorandum. and 1t
was supposed had left the city with
no intention of returning. To the mis-
Informed eve of reporter who read
the item. the words .'on memoran-
dunn seemed to imply that in getting
the diamonds the absconding broker
had practiced some sort of fraud or
deception upon the Maiden lane firm.
He was somewhat surprised to learn,
upon investigation. that the transac-
ton was a perfectly regular one. and
that it is the custom in the jewellers
trade for one merchant to allow dia-
monds or other jewels to go out to an
other merchant. or to broker, for
purposes of sale with no further secu-
rity for their return than a "memo-
randum" between the parties. Some
times this memorandum, even. is a
Wei bSii ShOs 81 thdb IC"ctS ~ out
simply on the promise that they shall
be returned.
'The custom is peculiar to our
trade said a well-known diamond
merchant to q reporter the other day.
Il don't believe that it prevails in
other bran ches of business at all, or,
at least never heard of it there. Of
course, the basis of it all is simple
honor and good faith. The custom is
in the days when jewellers in a town
were little community by themselves
and almost held their property in COM
mon. A sale by one man was re-
garded as sale by all OF course.
we dom have that idea now, but you
can can see how great a convenienc e
this practice still is to the trade. A
customer comes to me and wants
jewels of certain size. quality and
cut-perhaps some particular jewel
that is known throughout the trade.
don't happen to have the jewels. but
if l can send out and get them to show
TO the customer perhaps l can make
sale at once. My brother merchant
must know that L am responsible
and that my reputation is good for
keeping my word. Yet i must say
that merchants are, as q rule, care
less about letting their goods go out.
They seldom ask any questions. and if
man is known in the trade, and very
slightly. it is the easiest thing in the
world for him to borrow all the dia-
mondo he wants. 1t is singula ar
thing. too. that so few diamonds are
stolen in this way. / remember only
two instances besides the one you
speak of where a man who thus bor-
rowed Jewels ran off with them.
wholesale diamond merchants here
thus place quantities of the gems in
the hands of out-of-town dealers for
sale. The dealer only pays for dia-
mond when he sells it. The whole
saler never thinks of demanding Sc
Guilty. It's mighty nice practice for
the dealer. and the wholesale mer-
chant has this advantage-that he can
recall his jewels when he pIeases. II
the dealer fails the wholesaler can
come right on and take away the
Jewels deposited. The question of the
right of the wholesaler to do this has
been decided il his favor by the courts
/ was going 10 say that fully half OF
the so-called sales made by merchants
here to out-of-town dealers are after
this faShion.-M Y Sun