 | OF THE STREET-SELLERS OF MANUFACTURED ARTICLES. London Labour and the London Poor, volume 1 |  |
OF THE PEDLAR-JEWELLERS.
I HAVE heard a manufacturer of Birmingham
jewellery assert, that one pound of copper was
sufficient to make 10l. worth of jewellery; con-
sequently, the material to provide the unmanufac-
tured stock in trade of a wholesale dealer in Bir-
mingham jewellery, is not over expensive. It
may be imagined then that the pedlars who hawk
jewellery do not invest a very great capital in
the wares they sell; there are some few, how-
ever, who have very valuable stocks of goods,
pedlars though they be. This trade is princi-
pally pursued by Jews, and to a great extent
(especially in a small way) by foreign Jews.
The Jews are, I think, more attentive to the
wants of their poorer brethren than other peo-
ple; and instead of supplying them with trifling
sums of money, which must necessarily soon be
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goods, so that they may immediately commence
foraging for their own support. Many of these
poor Jews, when provided with their stock of
merchandise, can scarcely speak a word of Eng-
lish, and few of them know but little respecting
the value of the goods they sell; they always
take care to ask a good price, leaving plenty of
room for abatement. I heard one observe that
they could not easily be taken in by being over-
charged, for according what they paid for the
article they fixed the price upon it. Some of
these men, notwithstanding their scanty know-
ledge of the trade at starting, have eventually be-
come excellent judges of jewellery; some of them,
moreover, have acquired riches in it; indeed from
the indomitable perseverance of the Hebrew race,
success is generally the result of their untiring
industry. If once you look at the goods of
a Jew pedlar, it is not an easy matter to get out
of his clutches; it is not for want of persever-
ance if he does not bore and tease you, until at
length you are glad to purchase some trifle to get
rid of him. One of my informants tells me he is
acquainted with several Jews, who now hold their
heads high as merchants, and are considered
very excellent judges of the wares they deal
in, who originally began trading with but a small
stock of jewellery, and that a charitable do-
nation. As well as Jews there are Irishmen
who deal in such commodities. The pedlar gene-
rally has a mahogany box bound with brass, and
which he carries with a strap hung across his
shoulder; when he calls at a house, an inquiry is
made whether there is any old silver or gold to
dispose of. "I will give you a full price for any
such articles." If the lady or gentleman accosted
seems to be likely to buy, the box is immediately
opened and a tempting display of gold rings,
chains, scent-boxes, lockets, brooches, breast-pins,
bracelets, silver thimbles, &c., &c., are exposed to
view. All the eloquence the pedlar can command
is now brought into play. The jewellery is ar-
ranged about the persons of his expected customers
to the best advantage. The pedlar says all he
can think of to enhance their sale: he will chop
and change for anything they may wish to dispose
of — any old clothes, books, or useless lumber may
be converted into ornaments for the hair or other
parts of dress. The Irish pedlar mostly confines
his visits to the vicinity of large factories where
there are many girls employed; these he supplies
with earrings, necklaces, shawl-pins, brooches,
lockets, &c., which are bought wholesale at the
following prices: — Earrings and drops at from
3s. 6d. to 12s. per dozen pairs; the 3d. earring is
a neat little article says my informant, and those
sold at 1s. each, wholesale, are gorgeous-looking
affairs; many of the latter have been disposed of
by the pedlars at 1l. the pair, and even a greater
price. Necklaces are from 5s. to 1l. per dozen.
Lockets may be purchased wholesale at from 2s. to
10s. per dozen; guard chains (German silver) are
4s. per dozen; gilt heavy-looking waistcoat chains
6s. per dozen: and all other articles are equally
low in price. The pedlar jeweller can begin busi-
ness "respectably" for two pounds. His box costs
him 7s. 6d.; half-a-dozen pairs of earrings of six
different sorts, 3s.; half-a-dozen lockets (various),
1s. 9d.; half-a-dozen guard chains, 2s.; half-a-
dozen shawl brooches, 2s. 6d.; one dozen breast-
pins (different kinds), 3s.; one dozen finger rings of
various descriptions, 3s. 6d.; half-a-dozen brooches
at 4d. each, 2s.; one dozen necklaces (a variety),
at 6s.; three silver pencil-cases at 1s. 9d. each,
5s. 3d.; half-a-dozen waistcoat chains, 3s.; one
silver toothpick, at 1s. 6d. These make altoge-
ther two pounds. If the articles are arranged
with taste and seeming care (as if they were very
valuable), with jeweller's wadding under each,
and stuck on pink cards, &c., while the finger
rings are inserted in the long narrow velvet-lined
groove of the box, and the other "valuables"
well spread about the little portable shop — they
may be made to assume a very respectable and
almost "rich" appearance. Many who now have
large establishments commenced life with much
less stock than is here mentioned. The Jews, I do
not think, continues my informant, are the best
salesmen; and the fact of their being Israelites is,
in many instances, a bar to their success; country
people, especially, are afraid of being taken in by
them. The importunities and appeals of the He-
brew, however, are far more urgent than any other
tradesman; and they always wait where they
think there's the slightest chance of effecting a
sale, until the door is slammed in their face. I
believe there are not, at the present time, many
(especially small traders) who deal exclusively in
jewellery; they mostly add other small and light
articles — such as fancy cutlery, side combs, &c.
There may, at a rough guess, be 500 of them tra-
velling the country; half the number are poor
foreign Jews; a quarter are Jews, who have, per-
haps, followed the same calling for years; and the
remaining quarter, a mixture of Irish and English,
with a small preponderance of Irishmen. All
these "swop" their goods for old gold and silver,
and frequently realize a large sum, by changing
the base metal for the sterling article. Their
goods are always sold as being gold or silver —
If asked whether a particular article be gold, they
reply "It's jewellers' gold;" "Is this ring gold?"
inquires the customer, taking one from the box —
"No, ma'am, I wouldn't deceive you!" is the
answer, "that is not gold; but here is one," adds
the pedlar (taking up one exactly of the same
description, and which cost the same price) "which
is of a similar shape and fashion, and the best
jeweller's gold that is made." The profits of the
pedlar-jewellers it is almost impossible to calcu-
late, for they will sell at any price upon which the
smallest amount of profit can be realized. The
foreign Jews, especially, will do this, and it is not
an unusual circumstance for one of these men to
ask 5s. for an article which originally cost them
3d., and which they will eventually sell for 4d.
In London there are about 200 hawkers of
jewellery, who visit the public-houses; but few of
these have boxes — they invite customers by dis-
playing some chains in their hands, or having one
or two arranged in front of their waistcoats, while
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pockets. The class of persons who patronize the
public-house hawkers are those who visit the tap-
rooms of taverns, and countrymen in the vicinity
of Smithfield upon market days, (one of the haw-
kers tells me, that they succeed better upon the
hay-market days than at the cattle sales, for the
butchers, they say, are too "fly" for them. Sailors
are among their best customers, but the coster-
girls are very fond of drop earrings and coral
beads; the sailors, however, give the best prices
of all. I am told that the quantity of old
gold and silver which the country pedlars
obtain in exchange for their goods is "astonish-
ing;" and there have been occasions on which a
pedlar has been enriched for life by one single
transaction of barter; some old and unfashionable
piece of jewellery, that they received for their
goods, has been composed of costly stones, which
had lain by for years, and of which the pedlar's
customer was unacquainted with the value. The
more respectable jewellery pedlars put up at the
better class of public-houses, and, even after their
day's travels are over, they still have an eye to
business; they open the box upon the table of the
tap-room where they are lodging, and, under the
pretence of cleaning or arranging their goods,
temptingly display their glittering stock. The
bar-maid, kitchen-maid, the landlady's daughter,
or perhaps the landlady herself, admires some
ornaments, which the pedlar declares would become
them vastly. He hangs a necklace upon the neck
of one of them; holds a showy earring and drop
to the ear of another; facetiously inquires of the
girls whether they are not likely to want some-
thing of this sort shortly — as he holds up first a
wedding-ring, and then a baby's coral; or else he
exhibits a ring set with Turquoise, or pearls and
small diamonds in a cluster, to the landlady, and
tries it on her finger; and by such arts a sale that
will cover his expenses is generally effected.
There is one peculiarity these men have when
bartering their goods. A worn-out ornament of
jewellery is brought to them, and, although it be
brass, the pedlar never attempts to undeceive the
possessor, if he finds it is considered to be genuine.
Of course he never gives cash for such articles;
but he offers a large price in barter. "I will take
10s. for this ring, and allow you 5s. for the old
one," says the pedlar. It would never do to say
the ornament was not gold; the customer bought
it years ago for such, and no one ever disputed its
being the precious metal; should our pedlar do
so, he might as well shut up shop immediately.
The lady would be angry and suspicious; neither
would she believe him, but rather suspect that he
wanted only to cheat her; consequently the pedlar
barters, obtains the old ring, or some other article,
and 5s., for his commodity; and though the article
he has taken in exchange is worth only a few
pence, he very likely profits to the amount of 200
per cent. upon the cash received. The pedlars of
lesser consequence put up at humble private or
public-houses, and some of them at the common
lodging-houses. Those who have only small stocks
confine their visits to farm-houses and villages.
| OF THE STREET-SELLERS OF MANUFACTURED ARTICLES. London Labour and the London Poor, volume 1 | |