The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1904-02-07
MONEY LENDER HAS
INCOME OF A KING,
ID. II. Tolman Is Said to Make
$500, 900 a Year by EXacting
Exorbitant Interest.
THOUSANDS OF CUSTOMERS.
Operates in Fifty-Scven Cities in
the United States-Applicants
for Loans Must Pass Search
ing Examination.

New York. Feb. with a double-cen-
tered web. spreading to ffty-seven cities,
reaching from the Atlantic to the Pacific
and from the Gulf of Mexico to Canada.
D. II. TOlman. said by Assistant District
Attorney Kressler to be the chief OF the
money lenders exacting exorbitant rates
OF Interest. now is in receipt of an in
come exceeded by that of few of the cap
tains of industry of the United States.
Chasing himself as a private banker"
Tolman saueezes from the wage earners
of this city at least sos. coo each year. His
business in Washington is said to be al
most as great as that In New York. while
Chicago for many years has been a fat
field for his operations.
investigation made by detectives. under
the direction of the District Attorney
shows hat the methods of the usurers of
New York are of a nature to make the
original Shylock appear as a genius of
generosity. Conducting his business on as
careful a plan as is done by any of the
great banking institutions in the country,
ToInan has prepared 4 schedule not unlike
that made use of by the life insurance
companies.
Those who apply to him for loans are
ANf'iN In dNSSl0llS " tSS, Dtt 4
cording to the amount of money that is re-
ce!ved by them. The man who earns s. a
day can borrow from Tolman only a small
sum, while the man who earns $500 a
month can borrow a fairly large amount.
but each has to pay interest in proportion
to the amount OF the loan. The applicant
for a loan. before he receives his money
must pass an examination that makes the
questions of a census taker appear simple.
SEARCHING EXAMINATION.
Starting with his full name. the appli-
cant must tell in writing by whom he is
employed and where: who is his direct su-
perior in his place OF employment and in
what department he is employed. He
must then tell the amount of his salary
and when it is payable. He must give a
list of his debts. telling why each was &C
cumulateG.
Next the applicant tells whether he is
married or single. how many children h
has. what church. if any he attends. and
who Is his pastor. Next the money lender
demands to know the names OF the appli-
cant's closest friends: the names of a
dozen Of his fellow-employes and
the names of his trades people. The
names and addresses of his parents are
required, as are the names and addresses
of his wife's parents and finally the names
and addresses OF his brothers and sisters
and the names and addresses Of his wife's
brothers and sisters.
Having properly identified himself and
placed all his secrets in the possession of
the money lender, the applicant for a loan
is just one step nearer the cash he may
need to pay for a physician to visit a
dying child.
PROFITS OF THE BUSINESS.
1t Is the plan of Tolman to more than
double the capital invested every forty
weeks. To do this a pretty programme
has been arranged. The mechanic who
desires an accommodation of SIS. visiting
one of the Offices of Tolman & Co. is told
that his application must be made for
so. as one dollar is charged for an appli-
cation fee and another dollar is charged
for brokerage.
When the SIS is obtained by the Dor
rover, he attaches his signature to notes
with face value aggregating SIS. covering
twenty weeks. In this way TOlman makes
certain of being repaid in twenty weeks
Sl5s for every 100 lent by him.
Just how Tolman obtained the large
capital required for him to spread his
lending business into fifty-seven
cities he has never explained. 1t has been
suggested that the president of one of the
banks of the city belonging to that class
whose methods do not commend them
selves to the clearinghouse has been a
silent partner in Tolman's deals.
According to former employees of the
money lender n uaa a ingl do, vrhan c-ln
was not lent from each of his six New
York establishments. This makes s.. 900
the minimum lent in New York each day
by Tolman. Allowing 800 days to the year
in which business is done, his loans
amounted to 5000 100 annually. 1t requires
only a glance at a table which was pre-
pared by himself to show that his profits
on such loans are s5Oo.ODO in this city
alone.
THOUSANDS INVOLVED.
Thousands of wage-earners in New York
City are in the grip of Tolman. Among
them are clerks of all classes, Post-Ohice
employees. telegraph operators, policemen
and firemen, laborers, railroad men and
a few professional men, including |
doctors n clergymcn. In
washington the list of his customers in
cludes hundreds OF department clerks and
1t Is said that even members of the House |
OF Representatives ave borrowed from
him..
he advertises that he has offices in |
ntty-seven cities and among them are
Boston, Buffalo, Providence, Hartford,
Jersey City, Newark, Philadelphia, Balti-
Cleveland. Pittsburg, Minneapolis.
st. Louis. Memphis, Louisville, New Or |
leans. Kansas City. Denver and San
Francisco.