The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-03-14

bearing 2lz and ga per cent. interest, are
quoted at 112. and United States per cent.
bonds of 1875 were quoted in New York at
124 on Friday. Indiana could sell its 4 per
cent. bonds considerably above par. Loans
can be obtained on sound real estate in
most of the States of the central West for
from to per cent. During the last week
money has been loaned oil call at from l1s
to per cent. and at much lower figure
in the money centers of Europe.
In view of such facts. how can any per-
son who possesses ordinary sense bring
himself to imagine that any firm or asso-
ciati n can so invest money as 20 make 20
per &c 1t. a year? Does he dismiss common
sense, judgment and reason and permit his
magination to trick him into the belief that
the man who offers 20 per cent. per annum
possesses some secret for >noney-making of
which the wisest capitalists of the world.
who take or per cent. are ignorant?
Have the men who masquerade under or
binary firm names found the philosophers
stone for which the ancient disciples of
alchemy sought in vain and can turn base
metals into gold? If so, why do they trife
with the boundless wealth in their grasp
and dole it out in 20 per cent dividends on
loans?
In reply to such questions the fore
going. those who are urging people to in
vest their money as to obtain ~ per
cent. annual interest loudly urge that some
of the firms which make these offers have
been paying 20 per cent. i'm loans for three
triumph these persons who have made
money out of such operations ask. What
have you to say to that" The question
may be answered by a few facts. Five or
six years ago there sprang up. under the
cover of loose beneft-insurance laws in
the Eastern States, mutual benefit organi-
cations by the score, which promised
miraculous returns on money loaned them.
The scheme was adroitly presented. show
ing the profits to those who subscribed
Never We're so many names applied to or
CARNATIONS Indicative of all the Christian
virtues. Thousands of people took their
money out of savings banks and turned 1t
over TO the new school of financiers. who
promised wealth in few years. In vain
with experience and argument. To them
the dupes said, I'VE are getting our high
interest in monthly instalments.' After a
time state bank commissioners were COM
PEELED to recognize the evil, but for year
these amazing frauds held high carnival in
New England. Finally one of them was
investigated by savings bank commits
ISiO a,rtb of II
was found that little of the money had been
invested but accumulated to pay the
interest of or per cent. a month. which
the dupes who received it for the most part
| invested in new series. The officers of these
swindles voted themselves large salaries,
the chaplain of one of them, who had Of
fered prayer in two or three of the general
meetings. being paid 1900. Another exam
pie: A woman named Howe set up in Bos-
ton a borrower of money to help women.
She worked up a large clientage. She in
vested some of her money, but at length
the time came when she could not pay
her per cent. month dividend. and COL
lapse and great loss to many women who
had deposited a few hundreds followed. In
vassed by the agents q loan associations
which promised to pay II per cent. on
money TO be loaned in Kansas and other
new States on mortgages. Early i'm the
boom those who loaned received a quarter
ly installment of per cent. interest This
was noised about and money poured into
| these investment companies by hundreds
of thousands. Conservative people in that
region gave warning, but it was of no
avail. The quarterly payments of interest,
obtained by taking it out of the first money
| loaned, were unanswerable, and the loan
| ing went on for year. At length it be-
came necessary to pay the interest from
| the money collected of the borrowers
| That being impossible. interest was de-
| faulted. and since that time the larger
part of the money invested in these farm
and city mortgages has been lost Many
| such instances could be noted to show that
this promise to pay 20 per cent interest on
| money is a very old swindle i'm a new dis
| guise. Experience is the safest teacher,
| and experience teaches that sooner or later
/ these people who are trusting their money
| TO persons who promise 90 per cent or any
other per cent. without giving security. will
| be defrauded.