Real Estate Record

AND     BUILDERS'    GUIDE.





Vol. XVII.





NEW TOEK, SATUKDAY, MAECH 25, 1876.





No. 419.





Published Weekly by

JHE REAL ESTATE RECORD ASSOCIATION.

tC. W. SWEET...............PRESIDENT AND TBEASUBER

PRESTON I. SWEET.........,. Secbetaet.

iL. ISRAELS...............,.........Business Manager

TERMS.
ONE YEAR, in advance....^10 00.

■ Communications should be addressed to

<J.   SS.   ©i;VJE!ET,

Nos. 345 and 34ff Bboadwat





TIMELY SUGGESTIONS TO EEAL-
ESTATE OWNEES.





Ovir readers will agree with us that, of all
citizens, property-owners more than any other
class are deeply interested in the future pros¬
perity of New York City. It is to property
owners, then, that we must address to-day a few
words in regard to a subject which they no
longer dare to ignore. The passive pohey on
their part to let things take care of themselves
will not do in the future, and the present is just
the time to remind them that a new pohcy must
be entered upon and that they must be "up and
doing," if the New Tork of the future is at all to
retain its pre-eminence as the commercial em¬
porium of this continent

We have been led to these remarks by long
interviews had a few days since with the leading
officers and members of the Cheap Transporta¬
tion Association, an organization which alone of
all others understands the true wants of our
city, and which has during its short existence of
two years instituted reforms tending to retain
the commercial pre-eminence of New York.
This association, however, has yet a gigantic
task before it, and in that labor requires the
active support of every real-estate owner in New
York.

While the future of our metropolis is all but
.assured, we, nevertheless, must agree with that
;as30ciation where it says in one of its recent
reports, that "every shipment of grain and
every package of merchandise divebted from
this city adds to the already heavy burden of
real estate." In other words, whatever trade
leaves us is a detriment to New York, and hence
a blow to the value of, real estate. We are no
alarmists, neither do we believe that our public-
spirited citizens, when once they thoroughly
understand the danger threatening New York,
will tacitly look on and permit this continued
diversion of trade. Nevertheless, it has ex¬
isted now for several years. It grows month by
month, and will continue to grow unless we J£»in
hands and arrest it right now. In one week of
January of this year the export of corn from
New York was 294,000 bushels; from Baltimore,
637,995 bushels; from Philadelphia, 212,913
bushels; froni Boston 32,798,

Again, the receipts of grain at New York in
1864 were 69,100,279 bushels, and hi 1875 only
.49,118,513 bushelSj while during nijxe months of





1875 receipts of grain alone at Boston, Portland,
Philadelphia, Baltimore and New Orleans were
larger than during the corresponding period of
1874 by 4,000,369 bushels. The percentage of
increase in the grain trade from 1866 to 1872 in
Philadelphia was just four times that of New
York, wliile Baltimore and Montreal also far ex¬
ceeded us in relative increase. But it is not only
grain. In looking over the statistics we find
that New York loses and Baltimore and Phila¬
delphia gain about the same relative proportion
of Western bound freights, such as coffee, sugar,
soda ash, tin plate, iron, etc., although largely
sold here, as they gain in Eastern bound freights.

To illustrate how complete the discrimination
sometimes is against New York, amounting to
fully 100 per cent, during the last months of
1875, we quote the following extract from a
report made to the association in December
last:

A Western dealer ordered a quantity of soda
ash through a New York broker. The price of
the article here was 2 cents per pound, gold.
Freight from New York to destination, 41 cents
per hundred. In Boston the article was held at
2 1-16 cents per pound, gold. Freight from Bos¬
ton to destination, 21 cents per hundred. The
1-16 cent per pound, cost of the article in Boston
over the price in New York, amounts to 61 cents
per hundred; but the freights from Boston being
20 cents per hundred less than from New York,
there was a difference of 13| cents per huudred
in favor of making the purchase in Boston.
This difference of itself was a handsome profit, and
it is unnecessary to add the soda ash was bought
there, although the price of the article was less
here. In this instance, and in the instances re¬
ferred to in our last report, the shipments were
made over a railroad that owes its existence to
franchises obtained from this State, and which
is xmiversally recognized as a New York road."

A few more figures will be instructive to those
who think that New York has no rivals, nor can
have any. In 1856 Baltimore imported 29,705,-
286 pounds of sugar, and in 1872 217,984,935
pounds, an increase of over 633 per cent., while
New York from 338,927,585 pounds in 1856 in¬
creased to 794,137,077 pounds, or only 134 per
cent.

The importations of molasses into New York
ran from 6,374,169 gaUons in 1856 to 22,631,700
gallons in 1869. Since that period the receipts
have gradually declined to 17,250,820 gallons in
1872, a loss of over 23 per cent, in three years.
Philadelphia, however, increased her receipts of
molasses in one year over 3,000,000 gallons.

The receipts of wool at Boston were in 1872
already in excess of New York.

New York increased in foreign imports in 1872
less than 18 per cent.; Boston increased in the
same year 31 per cent. New York declined in
foreign esqports. during the same year 25 per
cent,, while Baltimore increased 48 per cent.,
Philadelphia 96, and Boston 21 per cent. In
domestic exports New York dechned over 5
per cent, while Boston increased 65 per cent.,
and Baltimore 22 per cent.





To any one who thoroughly understands what
is meant by the "prosperity of a city"  these
figures are really startling.   They furnish not
only food for reflection, but real cause for alarm.
The first effect of this diversion of trade has
already resulted in loss to the real-estate owner
of this city, as it is well known that property
extending from the Battery the entire length of
the East Eiver'has largely depreciated in value,
and wharves that heretofore were crowded with
shipj)ing   are   for    the   most   part  idle.     It
is   no   answer  to    say  that   different  locali¬
ties have been   selected  instead of the  East
Eiver front.  A city like ours should never stand
still but grow continually like the other cities
named above.    As yet,   however,  we are only
just opening our eyes to the danger threatening
us, and, thanks to the efforts of Cheap Transporta¬
tion Association, the greater   danger  may  be
averted if propei-ty owners are not entirely deaf
to their   own interests and stand by that or¬
ganization.    The gentlemen composing the as¬
sociation fully understand the causes that have
led to this diversion of trade, and they are en¬
gaged in removing them.    It is a labor of yearF,
however, and needs the combined skill and sup -
port of our best citizens.    They know that our
railway termini must be improved, that several
elevators are required to take the grain from the
cars to the ship.   In one word oxir merchan¬
dise must be handled and stored cheaper, and
that to New York must be secured equal ad¬
vantages   in  freight  rates.      The  entire sys¬
tem in vogue at this port induces many im¬
porters to send goods from Europe destined
for   the   interior   to   Baltimore,   and   thence
by Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.    Interior mer¬
chants insist upon such a course, as the freight
is cheaper, both by ship and rail, while the cost
of transfer at Baltimore is nothing against $5
per ton in carting,   damage,   stealing,  delay,
storage, insurance, etc.,  in New York.    To in¬
crease, then, the capacity of our terminal facili¬
ties for the handling and storage of merchan¬
dise and produje, to advocate the construction
of new avenues for transportation, lo devise and
advocale plans by which the defects and abuses
ot the present system may be remedied, and to
further all projects in connection with the sub¬
ject of transportation as will tend to advance the
commercial prosperity of New York, is the work
undertaken by the Cheap Transportation Asso¬
ciation.

Eeal estate owners, after pondering over the
figures given above, will at once see the neces¬
sity of joining such an association and giving it
their moral and niaterial support. Can the owners
of our soil be indifferent to the future? Let
us hope that the above plain statement of facts
will cause them to see the danger of holding
aloof from such a work, and that during the
present year this association, which already
numbers filteen hundred of our leading mer-