The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-12-02
MULBERRY STREETS BANKS.
More or Them Than Saloons. and All with Mig
Window DisplaJs or Wealth.

IVY - - " aSA Wv INV ~ WIN A1tB
Window DiHpiaJs OF Wealth.
II financial centres were judged by the num-
Der of banks, a man might be pardoned for sup
posing that Mulberry street was bigger than
Wall street. In six blocks in Mulberry street
there are thirty banks. That is an average of
five banks to the block, and these six blocks arc
in the humblest part of the street, too.
There are more banks in Mulberry street
than there are saloons. In these same six
blocks where there are thirty banks there are
only fourteen saloons. or an average OF u little
more than two to a block, and it is pretty safe
to say that in Mulberry street the banks ger
more Of the money OF the laboring man than the
saloons. Mulberry street is probably the only
place in the country where the banking bust.
ness and the saloon business go hand In hand,
too. or the fourteen saloons in these six blocks
no fewer than seven are also banking houses.
the bank the other half. On the saloon side the
window 10 filed, up with bottles with gaudy la.
bells and with whiskey and beer, signs. On the
bank side the wide window sill Is covered and
in some instances Is piled high with bank notes
and money, The proprietor occupies, a place
banking business, and the bartender on tho
other side attends to the saloon business.
by an ostentatious SHOW Of wealth a pile Of
money in the window is the first requisite OF a
successful banking business in Mulberry street.
and in the window OF every one OF the thirty
banks in the six blocks referred TO there Is n bile
of money. Tho bankers resort to all manner OF
devices TO make the piles look bigger. some
of them Crulnpie the banknotes up so that they
occupy more room. Others build up a mound
of u .pers and then cover IL with Ave and ten
dollar bills so that the whole pie looks like
money. In this way u couple of hundred dollars
can be made to look like n couple Of hundred
thousand. Another device Is to cut strips Of
pa per OF the size OF bank notes. daub the edges
green, and then use the strips as filings for
packages OF notes. Half a dozen real bills are
then put on top, and halt n dozen on the bottom
OF each package. The cd. IS Of these are turned
up 20 that the casual observer surely thinks the
whole package is made UP OF genuine notes.
Still another device is to have u box n the win.
dow full of sa wdust or something else and COY.
cred over with genuine bills.
In one OF the windows one day last week there
was a box two feet square. II was made OF yell
low pine and was bound about with iron. On
the side exposed to tho street Were the words,
/ From the United States Mint The cover Of
the box was raised, as II the box had just been
opened, and the box itself appeared 10 lie illcd
with crisp new bank notes. There were ones
/ str king. one bill was ~sticking 10 tho uplifted
cover ~ ii II was 50 new when 1t Was packed
that the iEA had stuck ii there. This exhibit
Was a popular ore. There were a lot of people
arOuni the window sIurilg AT Il. Not one NJ
: tApin seemed To know that thu United States
Mat WAS not the place whore bank nO,os arr
made, hence the words Prom the | E!tcd states
Mint inIrc, sUi them.
Tne.C Mulberry street bankers want no Gus.
tom except that OF the Italians. An American
who goes into any vi the places ON aIy protest
Lrts sunut COURTESY. For some reason on other
hr IL looked upon Win SUSPICION.