NOBLEMEN AND MONEYLENDERS.

Evening Star, Issue 4294, 30 November 1876, Page 4

NOBLEMEN AND MONEYLENDERS.

The London correspondent of the * San Francisco Bulletin ’ writes, under date 15 th July:—One of the most curious cases ever brought before an English Court was heard on Thursday before Yice-Chancellor Malins. The facts in the case had furnished food for gossip in the clubs for some weeks past, but their full bearing was not clearly understood. The plaintiff was the Earl of Lewes, a very young and green scion, of nobility, and the eldest son of the Marquis of Abergavenny. The defendant m as the Earl of Bective, who is a gentleman of more yeais and more experience, and the eldest son of the Marquis of Headfort. But behind this noble defendant stood a money-lendtr named Barnett, and a solicitor, Pain, who was also in the money-lending business, and it was charged that between them they had got the Earl of Lewes to give his acceptance for 111,000, for which he had received only LG. Two of these acceptances had passed into the Earl of Bective’s hands. They were for L 2,000, and this suit was for an injunction to restrain him from negotiating, dealing or parting with these acceptances save to the plaintiff himself. The story of these acceptances is as follows : —Last May the I arl of Lewes was in want of some money—no uncommon want with young noblemen—and having received a circular from Pain, addressed from 11 Wellington street, Strand, kindly offering to “ advance any amount on your note of hand alone,” he called at this place. There he found a solicitor’s office and a person who represented himself to be Pain, but who was really Barnett. This person agreed to let his lordship have what money he needed, and his lordship signed a number of acceptances in blank, amounting to LI 1,500 in all. Barnett then gave the young lord L 265 in cash, and told him to open an account with it at Hoare’s Bank, Fleet street; to get a chequebook, and to return with it to him. His lordship followed these instructions, and when he came back with the cheque-book Barnett said to him : “ Now, my lord, I shall get a friend of mine to discount your acceptances, and will then hand yoil" the money. But 1 must verify your signature on the acceptances, and the best way to do that will be for you to sign two or three cheques on Hoare’s and give them to me, just' to show, you know.” His lordship, with amazing simplicity, did as he was told, and signed the cheques, amounting to L 259, which he left in Barnett’s hands, not supposing they were to be used. A week afterwards, however, going to the bank, he found that the cheques had been presented and paid, and that LG was left standing to his credit. As Barnett did jnot offer any adequate explanation, and as he did not hand over the proceeds of the L 11,500 of acceptances, the innocent young nobleman began to think he had been tricked, and he had the good sense to go to his solicitor. That gentleman at once instituted proceedings, and applied to the Court of Chancery for an order to compell Barnett to surrender the acceptances, on the ground that they had been obtained without consideration. Barnett answered this order by producing and handing over to the Court L 9,500 of the acceptances, and stating that he had transferred the other two, amounting to L 2,000, to the Earl of Bective. This nobleman was then called on for the surrender of these bills, but he declined to give them up, alleging that he had paid full value for them. And in explanation of this statement he told the following extraordinary story :—He had known jParnett for gome time, and hud had

bill transactions with him ; but he be- \ lieved all the time that the man’s name was Pain. In May he went to Barnett about some other transactions, and Barnett showed him two blank acceptances of the Earl of Lewes, amounting to L 2,000. “ His lordship needs the money badly,” said Barnett to .1 ord ' Bective ; “ I am going to give you ! what money you want; but out of it you must give me L 2,000 for this young nobleman; I will fill up the acceptances and hand them to you ; you give me your cheque for L 2,000; and when the bills fall due you will get your money back.” Lord Bective did as he was told; he took the acceptances, and gave his cheque for the amount. He believed that Barnett would pay the money over to Lord Lewes; but, although this had not been done, he had given full value to the bills, and resisted the application to surrender them. When all these facts, as I have related them, were

iaia ueiore tne v ice-unanceuor, ne said that he was quite certain that Lord Bective would not part with the bills, but that he should not grant an injunction forbidding him to part with them. The affair had better be left alone, he thought, until the bills fell due ; then the Eail of Lewes would refuse to pay them, and then Lord Bective would sue Barnett or Pain for the amount, and recover it. Thus the matter is ended for the present. It throws light upon a subject which has always been rather mysterious—the ways of Loudon moneylenders with young noblemen. The present case is certainly a striking one. If the law had not interfered, Lord

Lewes would be in the position of a man who had incurred a debt of LI 1,500, atd had received only LG therefor. But now that the law has interfered, Lord Bective is in the position of the man who has given L 2,000 for nothing. The* money-lenders, however, have got their side of the story to tell. It may give quite a different color to the business. Money-lenders in Loudon are not all rascals. Some of them are far more sinned against than sinning, and they occasionally, I believe, do really generous acts. They run great risks, and they charge highly for it; but in this they are no worse than the rest of mankind. But to take LI 1,500 in acceptance, and to pay only LG, is cutting it very fat.