The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-07-26
BANKING In MEXICO
Something of the National Pawn
brOking Establishment.
"a LOOK AT ITS MANY AUCTIONS
american Trade and How the Foreigners
Have Monopolized 1.-THE Field for Our
GoOds-H How to Worked It.

CITT OF MEXICo, July 25, 1S91.-TSpecial
correspondence OF The HERALD. The
Great Mexican uncle is the most numerous
of his kind in the world Out of the IL co.,
1000 inhabitants of the country fully 10000
ZOO patronize the pawn shops, and you can
spout anything from silk handkerchief to
"a $4,000 diamond. You find these pawn
shops in every village and city, aud there
are more than sixty here at the capital.
THE biggest Of these is, to certain extent,
under the government. 1t is known as the
Monte de Piedad, and it has been in opera
ton more than one hundred and fifty years
it was founded as philanthropic institu-
tion by Spanish count, who endowed it
with a capital of $500, 900, and this capital
has since been doubled. 1t has millions of
dollars worth OF goods in its vaults, and
great many Of the wealthiest families loan
their jewels to it for safe keeping. 1t has
its fixed rules, and all depositors are treated
alike. The interests charged ranges from
8 to - per cent. per annum, and it loans
from 81 to $4,000 at time on single
articles. Every thing under the sun is &C
cepted as security, and the appraisers esti-
mate its worth and the pawn shops loans
two-thirds of the value they put upon it.
AL loans must be renewed within eight
months, and if they are not the goods are
put up for sale at the appraisers valuation.
They are sold at auction for as much as
they will bring above this, and these auc-
ton sales are held once q month. II the
goods fail to sell they are marked down for
the next months sale, and this marking
down is continued until they find pur-
chaser If the goods do not bring as much
as the amount of the loan the appraisers
must make up the deficiency out Of their
own pockets. This pawn shop loans 81 600,
600 year, and it has about fifty thousand
debtors, so that the average loan is about
two dollars. The loans average $500 day,
and about one-third of the articles loaned
are never redeemed.
THE MONTE DE PIEDAD
has branch offices in all the big cities Of
Mexico, and the chief shop at the capital is
just opposite the great cathedral and within
Q stones throw Of the national palace. I
have visited it number of times during the
past two weeks, and / attended one Of it,
auctions this morning. 1t looks more like
a great junk shop or auction room than like
the big banking institution 1t is. Furni-
ture of all kinds, from pianos to cheap
chromos. bicycles and mirrors, saddles
and harness, shawls and clothing were
mixed up in Heterogeneous mass, a nd men
and women were examining them and look
ing at the tickets which contained the
prices fixed by the appraisers attached to
them. AS one found what he wanted he
would point it out to the auctioneers and
they would put it up and show it 20 the rest.
If any higher bid was gotten the auction
went on until it was sold, but, as a rule, it
was knocked down to the first applicant.
In another part of the room were great
store cases containing hundreds of gold
watches, thousands of dollars worth Of dis-
monds and pearls and articles of jewellery