The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-01-28
STORIES TOLD OF
ENGLAND'S SHYLoCK

Oondon Cable Chicago Times-Herald)
Samuel Lewis known the world over
as the greatest and meanest of mod
ern Shylocks," is dead Half the peer
age of England and certainly every
one of the spendthrift aTistOcrats, are
left to mourn him, for hardly can they
find his like as a lender Of millions
There was only one Samuel Lewis
among the many money lenders who
thrive by high interest and find easy
victims in high places Lewis was the
real aristOcrat of his class He could
lord it over the great men of the coun-
try, even over princes OF the royal
blood, who had fallen into his hands,
and could live more lUXuriouSly than
the best of them.
1t is said of him that ne rarely had
less than Ed, 600 000 or &4000,000 lent on
the security of young nOblemenS ex-
pectations. while his brain held the
knowledge of a cholcer assortment Of
aristocratic family skeletons than that
of any other man in England
Only few months ago the newspa-
pers contained stories of now Lady
.rattOn Sykes had dealings with Lewis
to her sorrow. The name of Lord VIII
liam Neville is one that echoes almost
with a threat in the homes of the Lon
don smart set whenever it is spoken,
and IL was from Lewis that his lord
ship got the money with which he has
tened to his ruin. And the son of the
Marquis of QUeensberTy also had eX-
periences of-which the public has heard
in detail. These are only three among
"a thousand.
There is d saying on the race track
when a young peer is playing high and
losing all that he lis going to No. II
Cork street" 1t tells the whole story
No. i Cork street, a modest three
story building in a short street off a
n
Headquarters of the money king.
There is was that his business or
eanization centered. Past many clerks
and sometimes only after hours OF
waiting, his titled customers, with
lands, dfamonds~or family expectations
To back their requests for cash, would
make their way.
Quick and short they would get their
answer. 1t might be ready acqUisence,
or it might be a curt sorry j cannot
oblige you It might be a proposal Of
10 per cent interest, or it might be so,
IS or 100 per cent that would be de-
manded.
It is said, indeed. that Lewis mad a
great card catalogue of the members
of the nobility, their fortunes. their
habits their relatives and their hon
esty. On each card was marked the
amount the man could borrow and the
rate he must pay. so that even IN
money after his own ideas.
A high liver was Lewis, a frequenter
Monte Carlo and the race tracks, Ger
tain to have the best box in theater
on every opening night, certain to be
surrounded with ladies' wearing the
finest diamonds the eye could find on
any such occasion.
He was well over so, but did not look
his age. His jet black, waXed nous
tache, curling hair and little beads of
eyes did not give a really unpleasant
appearance, though he had always
something Of the air of a sporting man.
Along with the stories of his IN
1inchiug demand of his pound Of flesh,
there are stories, too, of kind hearted
ness, shown by him now and then
An American actor. one of the best
known on the stage, often tells the
story of how, when he had gone bank
rupt at the games of Monte Carlo
Lewis came to him, gave him hand
full of bank notes and said:
Go away from here and stay away.
This game is too fast for you. Pay me
when you can, and never mind the in
terest."
There are other anecdotes, too, of
Lewis tearing up the notes of young
men who could not pay him, but they
are few and far between \ ShylOck
he certainly was, but his friends retOrt
for him that at least his customers
might spare him the name. because of
the reputation borne by some of the
latter