The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-03-15


shops and very ready to help one another
In trouble. even to the extent of helping to
pay debts
Given a purely fake sale, then, and de-
fault In payment falls in perfectly with
the dealers plans. Any one Of the dozens
OF unfulflled promises made by the agent
may be the cause Of sufficient dissatisfac-
ton to make the buyer refuse payment.
II 80 well and good II. on the other hand.
he is ready to pay, no collector appears.
Now all Is ready. The dealer sends the
purchaser what Ia called lawyer letter.
purporting to come from an attorney,
but in many cases emanating from his own
Office. Settlement, says the letter. must
be made by a certain date, or suit will be
brought.
The mere threat may be effectual, and the
full price and the lawyers fees go into the
dealers pocket. More often no attention
Is paid to the letter, or an attempt Is made
to return the goods. The dealer invariably
refuses to take them back. In either case
suit is brought.
How frequently this occurs the records
Of the municipal courts as tabulated by the
investigator show. During 1901 one dealer
brought $50 suits IN the Fourth District
Court, another 122 and other known dealers
| loi, while for the same period the records
| OF the Second District Court show that
two dealers furnished 5s7 cases and one
dealer $40.
Out OF total OF somewhere near 0, 900
cases in these two courts. Ave men contrib
| uted no less than al and it was estimated
that one-siXth OF the business OF the over
crowded Fast Side districts is due to the
-pernicious activity Of not more than fifty
men,
The characteristic feature OF all these
installment sales is that title to the property
| remains in tho vendor until the full purchase
price has been paid, or else the title passes
and is Immediately retransferred In the
shape Of a chattel mortgage. Under the
| New York law, the vendor, II there Is de-
| fault in payment is entitled to recover his
property without repaying any Of the
| installments already paid.
II the return OF the property is refused,
he may begin an action for conversion.
: II he obtains judgment. he gets. an execu-
; ton against the property and. falling the
satisfaction Of that. an execution against
! the person OF the debtor. who may thus be
thrown into Jail.
With the bringing Of suit comes more
! serious dishonesty. The city marshals
! who serve summons in such cases are
| paid by fees and are naturally anxious to
| get as much business "a possible.
-Some OF them find it profitable to he in
all lance with the dealers who do so large a
legal business says the report. Accord
/ inRly each dealer has a marshal who ordi
/ narily servee-or rather does not serve-his
! summons and is known as his marshal
There are, or rather have been, four
especially prominent 'installment marshals'.
OF these one who was dismissed from office
by Mayor Low during the past summer.
had for many years done practically all
of one mans business and was known ~
his man. A former employee Of this dealer
states that on this business the marshal
used TO make sometimes SIS a day and that
he sometimes went out with wagon in
which to bring In prisoners. Another
marshal has for months been under charges
Of the most serious character
One marshal went no far as to assure the
investigator that he himself was the only
honest man among the entire thirty-seven.
Give a corrupt marshal a summons to
serve on some Italian laborer and IL is
| easier, quicker and more profitable to sit
down In the office and mark il served than
! TO 20 TO the trouble and expense Of hunting
IN the man. An assistant to one Of the
marshals il authority for the statement
that not more than SO per cent. Of the sum-
mons issued 20 his Office in installment
cases were ever served.
On tho day marked for trial the defendant
does not appear naturally enough. as he has
received no summons. A judgment is en-
tered by default. adjudging the defendant
guilty OF conversion.
The first document issuing out 81 tho
court, then says the report. II an execu-
ton against the property, which must lie
given "a the marshal for service.
without leaving his Office. and some
times, II In said. without even leaving ths
Office OF the clerk 81 the court. he makes
his return on the execution Of 'unSstis-
fed Thereupon the dealer immediately
obtains an execution against the person 81
the debtor. The legal, or illegal. process
/. nov complete. All that remains Is to
collect the booty
Armed with dozen OF 80 ~ these body
executions, tho marshal and dealer, accom-
pan.ed possibly by other dealers and an
assistant or t~o. sally forth. often ~ , ar
. clock In tho morning son" hours later
they r-turn. laden With prisoners aud
plumber
H. many casss. The nrsi intlmaiinn HE
d.Iaor has that scflon Lao leen tAA.n
asalns, him 10 "a Ia aroused ~ the nighf
.t,h q a.insnd foF tho fall amount ~ hls
contract plus a s..nsfous lill - ss'-ts .tindsr
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