New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-04-12
I,KE A GRIP ON HIS THROAT.
90 POOR MAN HELPLESS IN THE CLUTCHES
" OF PAwNBRoKERs.

,.rr OF INTEREST THAT WRECKS THE BODY
AND ToRTuREs THE soUL-A CLOUD
WHICH is EXPANDING.
:, xas system Of pawnbrokng. much similar to
al IN vogue in New-York today. winch reouced inc
49, Of Jerusalem to slavery long centuries before
FP a superstition of the coming Of Saviour. and
- nearly 600 years before the birth OF Christ.
WI an. small landed proprietors Of Greece into
a,oh,e serfs To-day those who are poor and In
20 must pledge their small possessions With the
hrokcrs 10 secure the money that is needed to buy
"a Il is a question Of the sacrifice OF all things
:, raue for the one thing that viii keep lie In the
body. IT,. l., rrro,v con.
when one looks at the subject in purely con-
s.rra,ive and contemplatlve way, there is STRIKING
, hn,vreen the conditions which existed in
ano,ent times and those which exist to-day When
h second temple was built at Jerusalem tribute was
,.vied upon the people to secure the heeoeu iius'
an exhausting system of taxation that was ioS ulAo
some of the local procedures OF nouein S"es'
Nehemiah the Biblical historian. ouoted tne oppresSed
Jews as saving: we have mortgaHeu ooi ianuS' WHO
,sras and houses that we might buy corn because
- IT. Aoortb.s others said ave have borrowed
,.r Cor the Kings tribute and that upon our land
and VINEYARDS; and, 10, we bring INTO bondage our
CONS and our daughters to be servants neither is 1t
&, our power to redeem them for other men have our
land and our vineyards"
Nehemiah does not say more's the pity. what rate
Of interest the poor people Of Jerusalem were COM
relled to pay on the money secured by their mort
gaees for the purchase of corn. but II it were equal
- the thirty per cent per annum charged by the
oxnbrokers of New York. under full sanction Of law. ii
a. no wonder that their lands and vineyards passed
into the hands of other men, and that their sons ana
aanchters went into bondage as servants. In all
times from the days of Nehemiah to to-day, usury
has been the accompaniment of misery At certain
periods usury has been overthrown and usurers and
their methods have been condemned as immoral. But
This has been always when misery has become SO
widespread that the Insurers became possessed OF
almost the complete possessions of the poor. If any
one doubts that such condition is not threatened in
Ncw.Yorg let him consider such facts are readily
pesentable.
There are recorded in the once OF the
MAYORS Marshal. in the City Hail. the licenses
NJ no pawnbrokers. Each of these pawnbrokers
pavs TO the city $500 year for the privilege Of oanins
money at rate Of interest Of 80 per cent per annun
npon collateral security in addition TO when he huSs
eIe bond of $4,000 for the "honest and respectable
conduct Of his business These bonds alone represent
capital of 81 100000, while the licenses aggregate
s,5 600 n wear. or q tax OF over per cent on
q, 600 600 which must necessarily come ont OF the
n,ckets of the poor every year. These are small
frures compared with those which can be quoted Inc
Eve simpsons alone do business in NewYork city OF
over 900 year-and they are only hve ont OF
10 That IS 40 duly licensed by law to charge
interest al the rate OF 30 per cent per annum No one
knows lust how many other pawnbrokers there are VINO
Al M, nav license but who nevertheless carry on
business which the law says is legal only when the
privilege is paid for.
$500 year may charge thirty per cent interest per
snnum. and the law protects him. Another who does
not pay the license fee will be convicted OF usury for
making the same interest charges with similar collateral
pledges as security The fee determines whether
an exaction of runous interest is usury No one at
all acquainted with the city will believe that there arc
not more than 10 pawnshops on Manhattan Islane'
II may be that there only that number oil establish
ments outside of which hang the ancient Medcl synDoi
Of three pills. but there are loan Offices which 90
nothing more nor less than pawnbrolng business.
These loan Offices are more vicious than even 'he
licensed pawnshops for they are not subject to such
restrictions as the law is pleased to place upon the pus
ness Of those who pay the fee OF $500.
THE LEGAL RATES OF INTEREST
Under the State law Of 1883, pawnbrokers are al
lowed TO charge their loans OF sums less IMAM @o
three per cent month for the first six months and
two per cent month thereafter until the expiration
of the year. when the pledged articles become the
property of the pawnbroker If not redeemed ol
gums of over 800 the rate Of interest Is per cehe
a month for the first six months. and per cent
other
these figures show a yearly interest of 80 per cent
on small sums and is per cent on those over Sloo'
Naturally the bulk OF the business is done with the
poorest people, there being fun thousand loans OF
sums less than 800 to over that amount mere
FORE the fighuly exorbitant rate OF 80 per cent Is
charged TO people who would not resort to the pawn
shops at all IL driven there by the drest necessity
There is something so cruel In such system that
The wonder is that Il ever coud have existed But II
did exist in ancient times it does now, and will exist
until the Solons at Albany do away with 1t as did
the original soons in Athens, more than five centuries
before Christ
The majority Of the population Of Athens in Solons
time were small landowners, happy and contented in
tie sense Of propretorship which ownership Of land
nearly always imparts. BY degrees they became in
debted to their morgagors until not only had their
lands passed from them, but they practically
slaves TO their creditors. Scion is synonyme for
wisdom Scion issued decree proclaming general
shaking of of burdens of debt and cancelllng all
obligations made on the security Of the land or Of
the person Of the debtor. This practically abolished
slavery, but the people allowed afterward to
mortgage their lands at rate Of interest to be
mutually agreed upon between the borrower and the
lender 1t did not entirely do away with debt 1t left
Athens free. however, from the continual agitation
Of insolvent debtors. and that that the people
were prosperous again and contented.
TREMENDOUS BUSINESS.
1t would startle the community if the exact figures
concerning the extent Of the pawnbrokng business in
New-iork could be given. If there only 10
pawnshops, averaging 200 loans each day, which is
moderate estimate inasmuch as some Of the larger
shops make twice that number Of daily loans, IL shows
That there are o., 600 people in New-York who are
compelled TO resort to the pawnbrokers for loans every
day-a total Of 100000 a month. OF course during
month the same persons may visit the pawnshQp
several times, and IL is not supposed that each loan
represents an individual. But the figures nevertheless
prove the enormous extent Of the business. Tho
nsureS are not exaggerated, and IL be said on a
pawnbfokers authority that over 100 watches are
p'edsed with single broker every month. On this
proportion Of LOO watches TO broker out of no.
ana considering the proportion Of watches to other
ps~hable possessions, the estimate Of the monthly
returns Is reasonable at the figures given. Set forth
u another way it that there are 10000 people
~ New-York City who every day contract TO pay to
.' pawnbrOkers 80 per cent on sum Of some size
the mil ~ lie I'M m ~