The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-04-10


and searching records in widely sep
arated localities.
We fixed the maximum amount Of
loan 1T fifty dollars, with the double
purpose of making all loans a. safe ~
possible and of giving the relief
sought to as many applicants as our
resources would permit 1t was not
expected that one bureau of the kind
would be able to meet the demands
that would be made upon it, but we be.
ieved that its successful operation
would lead to the opening of similar
offices in other districts of the city and
also in other parts of the country. Tho
actual success Of this experiment can
only be demonstrated by the repay
ment of the loans that are made. The
money goes out freely enough and our
resources enable us to make thus far
only about one loan where there are
ten applications. The bureau is kept
open from ten to Eve o'clock each day,
Sundays and holidays excepted, and
applications are received and recorded
in an indexed register. Applicants are
told that the bureau is only lending
about five hundred dollars q week at
present, and that it may be some time
before their names are reached; but this
does not seem to discomfort them, and
a large majority of those who hav-
applied for loans thus far are PEG
pie of sterling character who are tenn
porarily embarrassed and who have
very natural objections, even in the
worst extremity. against subjectinR
themselves to the extortions of the
regular money brokers and pawnshops.
The rates of usury inflicted upon tho
poor as shown by letters that have
come to the bureau are almost beyond
belief. amounting in many cases to al
most two hundred per cent. It does
not surprise us, therefore. that all
classes of people apply for loans to
escape these sharks, in their hour of
need. We do not pretend, however,
to do banking business primarily, and
when a gentleman applied for a loan
of fifty dollars, on the ground that he
preferred to get it from us and pay six
per cent. interest rather than draw his
deposits from the bank, he was prompt
~ refused.
Our method of procedure is rs fol-
lows:
The applications are attended to as
nearly as possible, other things being
equal, in the order Of their reception,
but preference is given to wage-earners
with families of small children, and in
many cases We have taken immediate
action to prevent the eviction of fami-
lies from their homes, and to save pur-
chasers of household effects on the in
stallment plan from the loss of their
property. Appraisers visit the homes
of applicants and appraise the value of
the property they wish to offer as Sc
curity. References are required from
each applicant, and before anything
further is done these references are
seen and their testimony taken in re-
gard to the character of the applicant
who has used their names. As an addi-
tional safeguard a search is made
at the registers Office in every
case, to make sure that there
is no incumbrance already on the
property offered as security. When
all these points are satisfactorily
settled, notices are sent and the loans
made, each borrower paying fee suf-
fcient to cover the actual expense Of
fling and preparing papers, making
search and the fee Of notary. The
originals of all chattel mortgages arc
kept and copies are fled with tho
register. Our blank form Of applica-
tions contains the name in full. the
amount of loan, the security, present
residence, previous residence, kind and
of business.
1t is my candid belief that we are
upon an era which will see .
decided change in the treatment of |
it in place of charity. A little timely
credit, wisely bestowed, helps to make |
men independent, and it is well known |
that most men who have got on in the |
world have done so through having |
this advantage at the critical turn in |
their lives. Most of the great COM |
houses and financial institu- |
tons would be driven to the wall at |
times if they were not able to secure |
credit sufficient to tide them over.
must be done by the legis-
latures and perhaps by congress itself,
10 prevent the poor from be.
ing preyed upon by the usurers,
IS they are at present We in
vestigated the case Of q woman
who borrowed fifty dollars from a loan
broker and was obliged to give him .
"a 10 cs~ Ill
cents payable in four months. and this
8 lower than the rates frequently
charged In many cases on loans Of
twenty-five dollars a premium Of ten
dollars month is charged.
feel confident that our bureau has
been started in the right direction and
hat it is doing good work, but 1t il
not possible for US to meet all the de-
hands that are made upon us, and
'ome of our would be clients so far
this that they make the
lirest kinds of threats, because we fail
% give them the loans they demand,
Il sight The loans thus far made are
o persons who, through sickness or
ack of employment. have been
to the greatest extremity
dany Of them are lawyers, literary
men, dressmakers, milliners, me
hanics Of all kinds. contractors.
eachers, many Of whom are persons
4 education and refinement, who
must have suffered greatly had they
lot received the timely help this bu
eau has Afforded them
DAVID r. GERER