The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-04-17
MONEY FOR THE POOR
Cornelius Vanderbilt & Co. to Con-
duct a PawnshOp in Gotham.
1t Will Be Called the PrOvident Loan
Society and Money Will Be Loaned
at Per Cent. Month.

NEW YORK, April 1e.-Cornelius Van
derbilt & Co, pawnbrokers. will open an
office for business in the Charities building,
Twenty-second street and Fourth avenue,
the latter part of the week, under the name
of the Provident Loan Society of New
York and only 1 per cent. a month will
be exacted on chattels Associated with
Mr.. Vanderbilt are Otto T. Barnard Chas.
c. Beaman, Henry r. Beekman, William
L. Bull Frederic r. Coudert, Charles T.
Cox, John d. Crimmins, r. Fulton Cutting.
Robert w. De Forrest, William Z. Dodge,
Charles S. Fairchild. David H. Grier,
Abran S. Hewitt, James ]. Higginson,
Adrian Iselin, jr., d. Willis James, John
S. Kennedy. Seth Low, Solomon Loeb, AL
fred b. Mason. Victor Morawetz, j. Pier
pont Morgan, Oswald Ottendorfer, Jacob
H. Schiff, Gustav II. Schwab, Charles S.
Smith. James Speyer, Walter Stanton, ].
Kennedy Tod and Abraham Wolff.
They will operate under the provisions of
Assemblyman Sheffield's bill, which was SO
widely discussed at the time of its passage
through the Legislature. and which was
signed Friday by Governor Flower. The
purpose of the organization. as outlined in
it's charter, is to loan money at interest
upon the pledge or mortgage of personal
in need of aid The incorporators are also
allowed 10 borrow money at a rate of in
terest not exceeding the lawful rate, 10
Sioo66o w will be provided at first but no
stock will be sold 10 any of the incor-
porators. All amounts paid In will be In
the form OF subscriptions, and per cent.
per annum will be allowed in return. Any
sum accruing as profit will be converted
into a reserve fund to be loaned out TO
DIR David II. Greer. pastor of st. Barthol-
omeW's Church. is the prime mover in the
plan. He said: Il have given the question
careful study for a long time. and believe
il is in the direction of solving the problem
of caring for the poor. At first we shall
open but one place for business. and II
be established all over the city. 1t will
be necessary, of course, to go slow for
time, and a great deal must be left in the
hands of the manager, whom we will Sc
lect at our meeting Tuesday What we
want is a man Of wide experience, who will
of articles that may be presented to us
as pledges We will loan amounts from
81 TO $780, and as our rate of interest will
be 1 per cent per month, we will have
TO use great caution.
Last winter l determined to start
loan annex to the St Bartholomews Aid
Society, and after talking it over with
some members of my congregation they
so well that the Provident Loan Society
followed. The latter is already attracting
country and if it succeeds similar concerns
will spring up in all the big cities If it
fails We shall feel that we were mistaken,
1.-The basis of our idea is that IMPROVE
dence is not the sole cause of poverty.
Workfngmen. L claim, are just as honest
as millionaires, but are often, through
lack of work, forced TO pledge their small
belongings for ready money. To compel
them to pay a rate of per cent. month
is TO work a great hardship A capital
of $4,000 in a great city like New York
will be but a drop in the bucket If our
plan succeeds. At about 100000 will be
nearer the mark. Already we are simply
flooded with requests for small loans. In
our little place in st. Bartholomew Mis-
sion people come in such numbers that
forced. to turn hundreds away.
so far as the charge made by the pawn
brokers that this Is a mOney-making scheme
is concerned, none of the directors expects
to make n cent OF profit. 1t is almost an in
suit to suppose that such men as comprise
the directory would be associated with a
scheme TO make money under the guiSe of
charity. There is similar society in Bos-
ton: two are In Paris-One. elaborate
loan bureau, run by the government All
through Europe there are such institutions
Some of our friends have visited them and
know they a great blessing to poor
people. our plan has the earnest approval
of the Mayor and of Archbishop Corrigan,
both of whom have given the matter deep
study. l do not, however, wish to be I'M
derstoOd as critCising the pawnbrOkers or
their methods, for / sincerely believe that
they have done a great deal of good by
lOaning money to the poor during the hard
times which have just passed. Their
rate may be a little high, but that is not
for us to discuss"
Gustav Schwab. ]. Pierpont Morgan and
other directors talked in the same strain,
and ridiculed the idea that the Provident
ness enterprise, in spite of the assertions to
that effect by the pawnbrokers.