September 13,T^54





The Record and Guide.





927





THE   RECORD  AND   GUIDE.

Published every Saturday.
191   Broadway,   N.  Y.





TERMS:

am YEAH, iu advance, SIX DOLLARS.

Commtinications should be addressed to

C. W.  SWEET,  191   Broadway.

J. T. LINDSBT, Business Manager.





SEPTEMBER 13, 1884.





The expected coM wave bag come at last, and the fall of temper¬
ature has been so rapid that fears are expressed of a possible
*' cold snap," which may injure the corn crop. Indeed frost is
already reported in Dakota and Wyoming, and perhaps may be
heard of further east before this paragraph is published. Still it
is safe to assume tnat the corn south of the latitude of Chicago
ia practically safe in any weather contingency. The enormous
interest involved in a good corn crop, and its excellent prospects,
have led to oversangulue estimates of its good condition. A
great deal of injury will be done, notwithstanding the hopeful talk,
if there is frost anytime in September.





"Sir Oracle" explains elsewhere some of the considerations
which make a great corn crop so important this season. It will
make up for the deficiency due to the low price of wheat in our
export trade and will largely increase the income from our pro¬
vision export, not only next; year but the year after. But there
are other considerations that more directly affect Wall street.
Corn is a far more important factor in increasing railway receipts
than wheat. It ia bulky and is generally carried a short distance,
and hence subject to local rates, thus swelling the revenues of the
railway companies. There will be no talk of railway wars after
the corii crop begins to move, for the various lines will have so
much to do that there will be nothing to dispute about. This year
the corn movement in the Southwest will commence earlier than
usual, as, tempted by the high price of corn, the farmers are strip¬
ping the stalks so that the ears may dry quicker than if they
remained out doors to be mellowed by the cool air of the later
autumn.





Speaking of corn suggasts the name of Abram S. Hewitt. It is
to the credit of that statesman that he realized years ago how
important that crop waa likely to become as an exportable article.
He wished the government by all proper means to make foreign
populations acquainted with the value of that cereal as an article
of food. Since then great progress has been made in that direc¬
tion. We have a monopoly of corn growing as of cotton growing,
and the former is likely in the not distant future to compare with
the latter in levying tribute on all nations with whom we have a
foreign commerce. In casting about for a worthy candidate from
New York, how unfortunate it was for the Democratic party and
the nation that it did not think of Abram S. Hewitt.





There is a well-authenticated rumor in political circles that the
leaders of the Independent Republican movement, as well as a
number of the most distinguished Democrats, have united in a writ,
ten request, asking Grover Cleveland to reconsider his letter of
acceptance and resign in favor of some eminent Democratic states"
man whose public career was unspotted and whose private life was
without a stain. The surprising result of the Maine election is
said to be the occasion for this proposed coup d'etat. It is believed
the nomination of Senator Bayard or ex-Senator Thurman would
lead to the withdrawal of Butler and the easy defeat of James G.
Blaine. The names of George William Curtis, Carl Schurz, Horace
White, ex-Senator Eaton, of Connecticut, and several others
equally eminent in public life are said to be signers of thia unpre¬
cedented document.





Assistant-Secretary of the Treasury Coon has received a good
deal of unmerited commendation because he refused to permit a
public building to be begun in Minnesota w^hicli would cost more
than the Congressional appropriation. Since the beginning of the
government almost Congress has been niggardly in its appropria¬
tions for public buildinga. All that could be done was to get
inadequate sums voted, and then when the structures were half
finished ask for more. This was the history of our New York post-
office, aa well as hundreds of other important buildings. Secretary
Coon's interference with the ordinary way of doing business may
get him aome cheap applause, but it will save nothing and do no
good.   The public and' the press insist upon being humbugged by





these pretences of economy in appropriations for public improve¬
ments, but the latter we must have and must pay for tbem.





The name of Alderman Grant is coming to the front as a possible
Democratic candidate for Mayor. He has several qualifications.
He has plenty of money and is willing to spend it, which will make
him popular w ith the " boya," and he voted against the Broadway
franchise being given away, which will commend him to the honest
voters. Mayor Edson expects the support of the County Democracy
and we really think he would make an excellent chief magistrate
of the city under the amendments to the charter passed by the last
Legislature. Freed from the domination of the Aldermen and
responsible only to the voters he would make wise appointments
and cut down expenses wherever he could. The Republican can¬
didate ought to be Theodore Roosevelt, New York should have its
young Mayor as well as Brooklyn.





The Commercial Bulletin does not see the point. "After the
Aldermen are abolished, what guarantee," it asks, "have "we that
the single dictator who replaces them will not be chosen by the
same corrupt influences?" Of course we shall run the risk of
electing Mayors and heads of departments who are corrupt or
inefl&cient, but when things go wrong we shall know whom to
blame. It is ea^y to get at a delinquent Mayor, but a board is
irresponsible, Ithas neither a body to be kicked nor soul to be
damned. The path for rpform in this age lies ia taking aw.ay
power from legislative bodies and entrusting it to executive heads.
We must know whom to punish and whom to reward.





The recent defalcations in bank circles is unsettling the minds of
a very safe class of investors. Heretofore wealthy men who have
avoided the stock market have felt reasonably safe in purchasing
the shares of banking companies, the quotations of which stood
very high in the market. It seemed incredible that institutiona,
the stock of which waa 50 or 60 per cent, above par, should be
financially rotten, but the disasters to the Marine, the Metropolitan
and the New Brunswick banks show that the very best credit is no
assurance of wise or honest management. It is this class of invest¬
ors who will hereafter put their money into real estate. Stocka
have depreciated, bonds have become comparatively valueless,
and the shares of banking and other companies of high repute have
often become worthless, but realty, though subject to many legal
burdens, is at least secure. It is safe from stock gambling presidents
and absconding cashiers. This is one reason why we look for the
steady investment of new money in real estate. The lack of con¬
fidence in stocks, bonds, banking and other corporate institutions
wili pour the surplus savings of the community into real estate,
Lence we confidently expect a continuance of the improved feel¬
ing in real estate not only during this but up to the close of next

year.

■------------------------•--------------------------

National Debts.

It is a curious and significant fact that in only two nations in
the world is there any effort to reduce the national debts. Since
tbe war we have been rapidly paying off our national obligations.
In 1857 the national debt of Great Britain was £863,000,000, or
about $4,300,000,000. This has been reduced to £750,000,000, or
$3,600,000,000, but as Mr. A. J. Wilson writing from London shows
in Bradstreet's, that in the meantime the local debts of England
have increased fully $500,000,000 in thirty years' time, hence the
burden is quite as great on the British tax-payer as when the
national debt was at its maximum. But in other countries than
Great Britain and the United States the increase of national obli¬
gations have been simply prodigious. The aggregate capital of the
national debts of the world twenty-two years ago was in round
numbers about $13,000,000,000. Since then the national and Slate
obligations have swollen $15,000,000,000 more, that is $38,000,000,000
in all.

These figures are of special interest to owners of real estate in
this country. All taxation for debt-paying comes finally upon
land and labor. It is incredible that the people of Europe will ever
pay the principal of the national debts now piled upon them. The
time will come when the burden will become intolerable. But wo
present the phenomena in this country of a large and steady reduc¬
tion of our national debt side by side with the great and growing
increase of values in real estate. It is quite true that, as in Eng¬
land, our municipal indebtedness is steadily increasing and tax¬
payers would do well to organize everywhere to prevent these
local burdens from becoming excessive. In the organic law
of several of the States in the Union a limit is put to the
amount of indebtedneaa that any city or county may incur.
All the States would be wise to adopt some such provision. In
Philadelphia the charter prohibits the spending of any money th, t
is not already in the treasury. In other words a special tax must
be levied in that city before a new improvement is undertaken'
This checks improvements, but it lowers taxation. Our city finan¬
ces are iu anything but a satisfactory situation.   We borrow all