New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-04-12


The next thing to go may be bedstead and some of
the children after that have TO sleep on the floor Then
all superluous bedding and furniture goes the way
of the rest, leaving only the bed of the sick man,
stove and few chairs. All Of these possessions at
the start not of great value, per-
haps but they made the poor family fairly
comfortable. when they were pawned they were
appraised by the pawnbroEer worth only a trihe
to him, and he was careful to loan such mite that
under no circumstances could he lose penny. From
that time the family must work and save If the sick
to get back their little property To get
II back they must pay to the pawnbroker the principal
and interest at the rate Of 80 per cent q year.
Suppose the husband is worthless fellow, and the
wife the worker Of the family. out Of her earnings
she has provided certain comforts for herself and her
children She clothes and feeds them and sends them
to school. The husband wants money for rum and is
too lazy to work for it. He takes one article after
another from the home to the pawnbroRer, and with
the pttances thus secured Satisfies his craving for
LIQUOR The home is reduced to an abode OF misery,
the children, ashamed to go to school In their rags
find their way to the streets and become Instead pupils
in the school of vice and crime The law that the
husband who thus stole the things earned by his wes
toll Is net thief and that the pawnbroker who loaned
money on them is not receiver of stolen goods And
the law says further that If the poor woman seek to
redeem her goods she must pay back the principal ana
interest at the rate Of 30 per cent per annum There
the wife who has the craving for liquor and who orgets
her duty TO her home in her degradation. The husband
tolls early and late to keep his family from penury,
only TO see the things he has worked so hard for taken
to the pawnbroker for money. 1t Is not unusual
for such woman to pawn her husbands clothing whlle
he sleeps and the pawnbro1er, If he is not aware Oh
the circumstances, might easily imagine them But
the pawnbroker does not pay fee of $500 year Tor
the privilege Of having conscience; 1t is for the prv
lego Of charging interest at the rate OF 80 per cent
per annum or Of buying for few cents articles that
he may in case of on-redemption be able 10 sell al
TEMPTATIONS FOR THE YOUNG.
Then there are hundreds of boys and young men Dc
longing to respectable families who surrepuuousy Uhc
articles from their homes to the pawnbrokers thus 10
eecure more spending money than is allowed them by
their parents. The things are missed perhaps anu
the theft is laid TO some sneaIthlei "ho' ueS say
NAV have been able to secure an entrance 10 inc oo
II NAV be guests overcoat that is stolen, rev orha
ments from the parlor, or jewels from boudor'
servant may be suspected and discharged, Dut sus-
nicon never falls upon the boys. The young man
finds IL easy TO raise money in such way without ue
lection and he progresses rapidly In career oi
crime for theft becomes habit Just as much as does
gambling or borrowing money. There IS no restrlcuoh
npon the pawnbroker as to the persons to whom he
shall make loans. He can lend to whom he lkes' as
much as he likes, or ne neeu ieHu hoVhine "' "i u ~
fancy sezes him.
He Is the steadfast friend Of the professional THIEF
whether lie means TO be or not. The experienced
pawnbroker tell at a glance whether a person
offering an article for pawn has stolen H. III such
case he accepts the article but advances on IL Only
tiAng part of its value The writer knows OF one IN
stance where young man entered pawnshop and
desired a loan on a pair of diamond earrings.
3How much do you want on them?" asked inc
broker.
aOh. $780, replied the youth, with plainly assumed
carelessness. ,,
ouestoningly The youth took the money, ana the
broker received the diamonds. The pair were worth
at least $780, and the broker knew that uiey "OuH
never be redeemed There was chance that ue-
tectve might be in to look for them, but as the OoJ
was to all appearances thief, there was no reason WHY
the broker could not put the diamonds IN MS poche'
and own them forever afterward. OF course lie "ouu
have TO enter them on his book and keep them for one
year. but he could easily as not substitute cheaper
pair to correspond with the entry OH MS DOCKS anu INC
ticket issued Should the thief be arrested ana confess
TO the pawning of the jewels, the genuine pair cou
be given up the being glad to pay the reasonable
sum for which they pawned so long as inc pawn
brokers are licensed to be unlicensed in their metods
inst that long will they be- encourages OF crime anu
promoters of misery.
The clerk who gets into debt 10 pawnbroher Is com
PEELED to contribute to that pawnbroker 80 per cent per
annum from his earnings the principal OF the DEBT OK
lose the article pledged altogether There are uousau9s
Of snch clerks who are practically working for their
hard creditors And when the article has been redeemed
a. will have cost them to the extent OF the interest,"
charged more than It's actual vaiHG in of DawTr
ing There are many more.
THE FIRST PAWNSHoP.
The first pawnshop established In New YORK. Oh "iloh
there is any record was that OF waiter stevenson
which was opened in 1892 Others were added grad
nav ard about sixty years ago the city government
adanted An ordinance TO regulate the business Iihs
ordinance made IL necessary for the pawnbrohes 70 Pay
license of $50 yearly and prohibited charging hlghef
rate of interest than 20 per cent per annun' LIS
egisiatre passed law requiring pawnbrokers 10 pay
license fee Of $500 year, and fixing le r'le OF III
rate of interest from 20 per cent per anhun on an
loans whether large or small 70 80 per cent ror
was probably intended to compensate the paWnDrQhei
for the increased license rec as te m at
temnt was made at the last session OF the LEGISLATURE 10
pass law reducing the ite 81 pd 9eg pG
IL is generally understood that IL COST uem ldi 81
amount of money to defeat scur SG IN ir operoS now
mil bubble sentiment shall become SO aroused uiat
corrective legislation eahnCs Of Of Inc family Of simpson
doing business as pawnbrokers in New York rue are
all old men, and al ere n6 6pnness ~ in t Tie
FAMILY has amassed enormous fortune, ana me OK,
Of the combined Sps sd that ti they sgegae So
0oo,0O5 year: These, figures o ARE gwen , GRa
t tn9 The simpsons are Englishmen and there
is said to be one Irishman hs BUSINESS TSer.
but the otiecs are from otler Pai'9 ~ S te, eo
|, not c sn cers nom Poland and few from
Russia but majority are He 6@ lone aU Uf asy
s @ remain practically ER0W1 save to
such persons driven by ngGe am f 40 m there
M " M copasson in the creed Of the modern pawn,
croker and harder and more uHeehuhs cIculoi'
than they do not exist.
Tho tickets issued by the pawporone's Oh TN
contain a clause which reads; mot responsive III
case Of fire or damage" The law makes 'ho pawn
broker responsible for the return IN as sO'u
as when pledged of any article upon ~, 'o
an.homse act for immunity from claims for damage
S-N" y, To- or damage by fire. In this he IS
artiorv protccted however for If he insures the
O oss he holds in pawn he must nsuse them at tho
valuation he himself has placed upon them as indicated
nv the loans. For instance, II paWhofohcr iehus