Evening star., 1912-11-17

it can do better business with pearls,
gold, silver stocks and bonds
To the writer the manager explained
this tendency by saying that the greater
cost Of modern life is forcing people to
pawn things Of considerable value and
not the articles of modest value which
formerly formed the bulk of the pledges,
All over Europe more and more is being
loaned on precious objects and less and
less on articles of small value, he said.
He agreed however, that this tendency
is driving away from it's doors just that
clientele for which the Mont-de-Plete
was founded.
The ideal pawnshOp is the one imag-
ined by that Pope of the fifteenth cen
tury who founded an organization IN
Italy to lend money to the poor without
interest. From this beginning the sys-
TEN spread and about the year 1870 a
similar institution was started in France
at Avignon. 1t was not until December
II, 1777, however, that the present Mont
de Piete system was started in France,
and since then the business has been
gradually filling up and expanding-Wlth
the exception of short period during the
commune when everybody got back gratis
5, what he had pawned. Napoleon saw
the advantages of such an institution and
during his reign great impetus was
given to the movement.
Pawning in Paris is not the simple af-
fair it is in the United States. If the
would.be pawner in France is married
woman and wants to borrow more than
% francs. she must produce the written
consent of her husband; If a man, the
paWner If French. must produce an cleo
tors card, his military service book. or
several other papers which may officially
identify him, and in addition he must
produce cross indentifications, such as a
receipt for rent, or letters recently ad-
hi a. n c "a
proof that the first papers have not been
stolen. In the case of foreigners, pass
ports are accepted, as are papers showing
the applicant has been registered with the
police, but one must have envelopes as
well containing letters addressed to him
If one has the necessary documents his
offering is accepted for valuation and he
is given a number and told to wait. AT
the end of some fifteen minutes his num-
ber is called out from behind partition,
by a man whom he never sees. together
with the amount of loan offered. If ac-
ceptable, he produces his papers ana
waits until the transaction is placed on
record. If not he gets the parcel back.
1t sometimes pays TO try two or three
different bureaus, for the amounts of
loans offered vary a great deal-in some
cases as much as 100 per cent.
Getting the article out again Is matter
of less red tape. but, as the employees
never hurry, one may walt two hours to
redeem an article after he has gone
through the formallty or paying BACK the
loan with interest. All transa ctions are
secret, never become known to the pub
lie and, contrary to the general impress
sion, are not recorded with the police.
Since July 1, 1910, the interest on loans
has been $50 per cent: for insurance.
, storage and for the expense of the
, operation another $50 per cent is charged
aaI 70 fhar a
of 1 per cent which must be paid, max
: ing in all per cent.
! After the loan 10 made the pawned
article rests with the Mont de Piete for