THE costermongers, though living by buying and selling, are seldom or never capitalists. It is estimated that not more than - of the entire body trade upon their own property. Some borrow their stock money, others borrow the stock itself, others again borrow the donkeycarts, barrows, or baskets, in which their stock is carried round, whilst others borrow even the weights and measures by which it is meted out.

The reader, however uninformed he may be as to the price the poor usually have to pay for any loans they may require, doubtlessly need not be told that the remuneration exacted for the use of the above-named commodities is not merely confined to the legal per centum per annum; still many of even the most "knowing" will hardly be able to credit the fact that the ordinary rate of interest in the costermongers' moneymarket amounts to per cent. per week, or no less than a year, for every advanced.

But the iniquity of this usury in the present instance is felt, not so much by the costermongers themselves, as by the poor people whom they serve; for, of course, the enormous rate of interest must be paid out of the profits on the goods they sell, and consequently added to the price, so that coupling this overcharge with the customary short allowance—in either weight or measure, as the case may be—we can readily perceive how cruelly the poor are defrauded, and how they not only get often too little for what they do, but have as often to pay too much for what they buy.

Premising thus much, I shall now proceed to describe the terms upon which the barrow, the cart, the basket, the weights, the measures, the stock-money, or the stock, is usually advanced to the needy costermongers by their more thrifty brethren.

The hire of a barrow is a day, or a week, for the winter months; and a day, or a week, for the summer months. Some are to be had rather lower in the summer, but never for less than —sometimes for not less than on a Saturday, when not unfrequently every barrow in London is hired. No security and no deposit is required, but the lender satisfies himself that the borrower is really what he represents himself to be. I am informed that hired barrows are now in the hands of the London costermongers, at an average rental of each, or a year. man lets out yearly, at a return (dropping the ) of ; while the cost of a good barrow, new, is , and in the autumn and winter they may be bought new, or "as good as new," at each; so that reckoning each to cost this barrowletter , he receives rent or interest —exactly per cent. per annum for property which originally cost but , and property which is still as good for the ensuing year's business as for the past. man has rented a barrow for years, during which period he has paid for what in the instance did not cost more than twice as many shillings, and which he must return if he discontinues its use. "I know men well to do," said an intelligent costermonger, "who have paid and a week for a barrow for , , and years; and they can't be made to understand that it's rather high rent for what might cost at . They can't see they are losers. barrow-lender sends his son out, mostly on a Sunday, collecting his rents (for barrows), but he's not a hard man." Some of the lenders complain that their customers pay them irregularly and cheat them often, and that in consequence they must charge high; while the "borrowers" declare that it is very seldom indeed that a man "shirks" the rent for his barrow, generally believing that he has made an advantageous bargain, and feeling the want of his vehicle, if he lose it temporarily. Let the lenders, however, be deceived by many, still, it is evident, that the rent charged for barrows is most exorbitant, by the fact, that all who take to the business become men of considerable property in a few years.

Donkey-carts are rarely hired. "If there's donkey and pony-carts in London, more or less, not of them's borrowed; but of barrows to is borrowed." A donkeycart costs from to ; being an average price. The hire is or a week. The harness costs new, but is bought, times out of , -hand, at from to The donkeys themselves are not let out on hire, though a costermonger may let out his donkey to another in the trade when he does not require its services; the usual sum paid for the hire of a donkey is or per week. The cost price of a pony varies from to ; that of a donkey from to There may be donkeys, or more, in costermonger use, to pony. Some traffic almost weekly in these animals, liking the excitement of such business.

The repairs to barrows, carts, and harness are almost always effected by the costermongers themselves.

"Shallows" (baskets) which cost and , are let out at a day; but not in of those in use are borrowed, as their low price places them at the costermonger's command. A pewter quart-pot, for measuring onions, &c., is let out at a day, its cost being Scales are , and a set of weights a day.

Another common mode of usury is in the lending of stock-money. This is lent by the costermongers who have saved the means for such use of their funds, and by beer-shop keepers. The money-lending costermongers are the most methodical in their usury— per cent. per annum, as was before stated, being the rate of interest usually charged. It is seldom that a lower sum than is borrowed, and never a higher sum than When a stranger applies for a loan, the money-lender satisfies himself as I have described of the barrow-lender. He charges a day for a loan of ; a day for ; a day for ; and a day for If the daily payments are rendered regularly, at a month's end the terms are reduced to a week for ; for ; and for "That's reckoned an extraordinary small interest," was said to me, "only a day for a pound." The average may be a week for the loan of ; it being only to a few that a larger sum than is lent. "I paid a week for for a whole year," said man, "or for the use of a pound, and then I was liable to repay the " The principal, however, is seldom repaid; nor does the lender seem to expect it, though he will occasionally demand it. money-lender is considered to have a floating capital of invested in loans to costermongers. If he receive per week per for but weeks in the year (and he often receives it for the weeks)—his brings him in a year.

Sometimes a loan is effected only for a day, generally a Saturday, as much as being sometimes given for the use of ; the being of course repaid in the evening.

The money-lenders are subject to at least twice the extent of loss to which the barrowlender is exposed, as it is far oftener that money is squandered (on which of course no interest can be paid) than that a barrow is disposed of.

The money-lenders, (from the following statement, made to me by who was in the habit of borrowing,) pursue their business in a not very dissimilar manner to that imputed to those who advance larger sums:—"If I want to borrow in a hurry," said my informant, "as I may

The beer-shop keepers lend on far easier terms, perhaps at half the interest exacted by the others, and without any regular system of charges; but they look sharp after the repayment, and expect a considerable outlay in beer, and will only lend to good customers; they however have even lent money without interest.

In the depth of last winter," said a man of good character to me, "I borrowed 5s. The beer-shop keeper wouldn't lend; he'll rather lend to men doing well and drinking. But I borrowed it at 6d. a day interest, and that 6d. a day I paid exactly four weeks, Sundays and all; and that was 15s. in thirty days for the use of 5s. I was half starving all the time, and then I had a slice of luck, and paid the 5s. back slap, and got out of it.

Many shopkeepers lend money to the stallkeepers, whom they know from standing near their premises, and that without interest. They generally lend, however, to the women, as they think the men want to get drunk with it. "Indeed, if it wasn't for the women," said a costermonger to me, "half of us might go to the Union."

Another mode of usurious lending or trading is, as I said before, to provide the costermonger —not with the stock-money—but with the stock itself. This mode also is highly profitable to the usurer, who is usually a costermonger, but sometimes a greengrocer. A stock of fruit, fish, or vegetables, with a barrow for its conveyance, is entrusted to a street-seller, the usual way being to "let him have a sovereign's worth." The value of this, however, at the market cost, rarely exceeds , still the man entrusted with it must carry to his creditor, or he will hardly be trusted a time. The man who trades with the stock is not required to pay the on the day of the transaction, as he may not have realised so much, but he must pay some of it, generally , and must pay the remainder the next day or the money-lender will decline any subsequent dealings.

It may be thought, as no security is given, and as the costermongering barrow, stock, or money-lender never goes to law for the recovery of any debt or goods, that the per centage is not so very exorbitant after all. But I ascer- tained that not once in times was the money lender exposed to any loss by the nonpayment of his usurious interest, while his profits are enormous. The borrower knows that if he fail in his payment, the lender will acquaint the other members of his fraternity, so that no future loan will be attainable, and the costermonger's business may be at an end. borrower told me that the re-payment of his loan of , borrowed years ago at a week, had this autumn been reduced to a week: "He's a decent man I pay now," he said; "he has twice forgiven me a month at a time when the weather was very bad and the times as bad as the weather. Before I borrowed of him I had dealings with ———. He a scurf. If I missed a week, and told him I would make it up next week, 'That won't do,' he'd say, 'I'll turn you up. I'll take d——d good care to stop you. have you to rights.' If I hadn't satisfied him, as I did at last, I could never have got credit again; never." I am informed that most of the money-lenders, if a man has paid for a year or so, will now "drop it for a month or so in a very hard-up time, and go on again." There is no I.O.U. or any memorandum given to the usurer. "There's never a slip of paper about it, sir," I was told.

I may add that a very intelligent man from whom I derived information, said to me concerning costermongers never going to law to recover money owing to them, nor indeed for any purpose: "If any steals anything from me—and that, as far as I know, never happened but once in years—and I catch him, I take it out of him on the spot. I give him a jolly good hiding and there's an end of it. I know very well, sir, that costers are ignorant men, but in my opinion" (laughing) "our never going to law shows that in point we are in advance of the aristocrats. I never heard of a coster in a law court, unless he was in trouble (charged with some offence)—for assaulting a crusher, or anybody he had quarrelled with, or something of that kind."

The barrow-lender, when not regularly paid, sends some , or goes himself, and carries away the barrow.

My personal experience with this peculiar class justifies me in saying that they are far less dishonest than they are usually believed to be, and much more honest than their wandering habits, their want of education and "principle" would lead even the most charitable to suppose. Since I have exhibited an interest in the sufferings and privations of these neglected people, I have, as the reader may readily imagine, had many applications for assistance, and without vanity, I believe I may say, that as far as my limited resources would permit, I have striven to extricate the street-sellers from the grasp of the usurer. Some to whom I have small sums (for gifts only degrade struggling honest men into the apathy of beggars) have taken the money with many a protesta-

Those who are unacquainted with the character of the people may feel inclined to doubt the trustworthiness of the class, but it is an extraordinary fact that but few of the costermongers fail to repay the money advanced to them, even at the present ruinous rate of interest. The poor, it is my belief, have not yet been sufficiently tried in this respect;—pawnbrokers, loanoffices, tally-shops, dolly-shops, are the only parties who will trust them—but, as a startling proof of the good faith of the humbler classes generally, it may be stated that Mrs. Chisholm (the lady who has exerted herself so benevolently in the cause of emigration) has lent out, at different times, as much as that has been entrusted to her for the use of the "lower orders," and that the whole of this large amount has been returned—!

I myself have often given a sovereign to professed thieves to get "changed," and never knew to make off with the money. Depend upon it, if we would really improve, we must begin by elevating instead of degrading.