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December 18, IMO





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Record and Guide.





793















ESTABUSHD^ MWPHau^ 1868.

"Doblti) TO f^ EsTAJE. BujLwife AppKrrECTaiv i{«8n*w> DEOO^noH.
Basiifcss Alb Themes or GeHei^I l/rrci\EST

PRICE, PER TEAR IN ADTANCE, SIX DOLLARS.

JhMished etxry Saturday.
Telephone,          .... Cobtlandt 1370.

CkHnmunicatioDS should be addreased to

C. W. SWEET, 191   Broadway
J. T. LINDSEY, Buaineas Manager,





You XLVI.





DECEMBER 13, 1890.





No. 1,18:





A GREAT SUPPLEMENT.

Next week's issue {December 20th) of The Record and Guide
itnll contain our Annual Review of Building Operations on
the West Side, for 1889-90. It wUltx published this %ear in the
form of a supplement, accompanying each copy of the paper free of
extra charge. In addition to a history of huilding operations and
of real estate transactions in that section, during the last ten years,
it will contain tables shounng how many plans have been filed at
the Building Department for the erection of structures on the H est
Side, in the last twelve months; how many buildings have been
completed, how many sold, and how many remain on the market
to-day. There unll be, moreover, about seventy pages of fine iUustra-.
tions of practically aU the important edifices recently comj)leted,
between 59th and 12bth streets, west of Sth avenue. As this number
will be ot special interest to all the builders and architects of this
and other cities, it offers to advertisers, wishing to reach this class,
an opportunity that seldom arises. Copy for advertisements must
be in hand, at the office of publication. No. 191 Broadway, not later
than Wednesday evening.

Subscribers and others wishing to send extra copies of the West
Side Supplement out of town, can have five or more copies mailed,
free of postage, by sending the natnes and addresses to the office of
publication.

PROSPECTS in Wall street appear brighter than they did a
week ago, while the increased number of important com¬
mercial failures makes the general trade situation rather worse.
Money has been somewbat more plentiful during tbe past few
days; and as it is beginning to be loaned on time, borrowers are
feeling easier. Nevertheless there is still a great deal of money
locked up, tbe amount being estimated by good judges at forty to
fifty millions, and confidence must be further restored before it
will come out. A good many influences are under way tending to
bring about sucb a consummation. The importation of gold from
England, the prospect tbat Congress will postpone until July, the
time limit for the taking of imports out of bond under tbe old law,
and tbe equally good prospect that Congress will not adjourn until
means are provided for putting more money into circulation—all
will tend to give banks and lenders that feeling of security for tbe
future, witbdut which credit cannot be liberally extended. Indeed,
it is perfectly possible that such energetic measures will be taken
before spring comes that we will have a plethora rather tban a
scarcity of money. Be tbat as itmay, tbe season of violent declines is
probably over in Wall street for some time to come; and operators
who bave been able to buy stocks at present prices, and wbo can
afford to wait, will be able to sbow a comfortable margin
of profit before the expiration of many weeks. The newspaper talk
about the silver bill being in any way responsible for tbe present
trouble is extremely foolish. Even with the free coinage of silver
tbe foreign holders of our securities would be amply secured
against any lowering of tbe standard, for all of the bonds sold
abroad in recent years contain specific provisions that interest and
principal shall be paid in gold. The cotton shipments continue
large, but not so large as tbe reported size of tbe crop would war¬
rant. Last year, under the advice of the Alliance leaders, the
farmers kept back tbeir product and thus obtained the advantage
of an increase in price. This year they have kept it back in the
same way, but there has been no increase in price. It is said, also,
that whereas last year the quality of tbe cotton was excellent, thiE
year it is very poor and flocky, its spinning quality being a con¬
siderable percentage less than last year's crop.





THE problem wbich is exercising the minds of European an<J
particularly English and German financiers just at present is
the dupdsitum of thb^'^&ili^Uiie debt.' It is nc^ticeable that abroad
weliMro<ndoom|iMBtstha^tfaeircc(^t~0^^                seriously

affeii^ \g6n6rid'1ai>it^,'iiyefi to                            ife bas in tUe





country. On the contrary, the positions of the English, German
and Austrian banks has distinctly strengthened of late in such-
wise that the exportation of large amounts of gold from England
has not disturbed financiers in that country. Ti.is being the case,
tbe people interested are at liberty to deal with the cause of all
their troubles, and a knotty problem they have to solve. A com¬
mittee representing all classes of both tbe English and the German
creditors is at present sitting, and not only the national obligations
amounting to £26,350,000 will have to be dealt with, but tbe pro¬
vincial debts, the huge issues of Cedulas, the Buenos Ayres Water¬
works and Drainage Company, and some classes of railroad obliga¬
tions. The matter that will most urgently demand attention will
be the provision for the interest payments for the next two years.
If some such provision is made, the believers in the Argentine
Republic claim that tbe people of tbat country will have time to turn
around and put their affairs on a more permanent and satisfactory
basis. All accounts agree tbat the enormous natural resources of
the covmtry will, when properly developed, go far towards paying
interest on the mass ((f securities with which the national and
local governments are encumbered; but whether they go far
enough is the mooted question. Tbe creditors of the Argentine
Republic may consider them sei veg^ lucky, if in return for the
prompt and certain payment of interest they do not bave to sub¬
mit to a considerable reduction of the debt. The difficulty of the
problem will cloud European finance for some time to come. As
a trade item, it is interesting to note that the production of cheap
woolen cloth for export to the E^t is making great progress in
Austria, whereas tbe pr -duction of the finer quaUties at Brunn
and Reichenberg is being reduced. The higher classes in the Otto¬
man Empire are doing sl^&j with the national costume, and the
standard of living and the power of purchase of all classes is
steadily deteriorating. Hence it is that cheap English cloths,
despite the import duty, have come into demand, and hence it is
that the poorer qualities of stuff are holding the market





THE coming session of the Legislature promises to be of the
greatest interest, not only from a political, but from a legis¬
lative standpoint. With the Democrats in control of the Assembly
and the Senate still under the redoubtable leadership of Mr. Fassett
there are elements of discord, which assuredly will result in a
lively, if not particularly edifjdng spectacle. Important legislation,
which contains any partizan element, will have no chance of pas¬
sage. We do not know what bills Mr. Fassett has been preparing
since the sorry ending of his investigation; but of tbis much we
are sure, that both Governor Hill and the Assembly will find
most excellent objections to their perpetuation by means of a
statute. The public has never very much interest in these political
squabbles, and the anxiety of New Yorkers at the present time is
excited only by the bearings of the dispute on the passage of the
many bills which vitully affect their interests. It is not now
apparent in wbat way tbe rapid-transit problem will be presented
to the Legislature, but the Assemblv Democrats will be certain to
pass a bill of Tammany's making; and if the Senate is wise, it will
not insist on any of the objections urged last year. Senator Fassett
is the under dog in the fight; the people of tne city have declared
tbeir confidence in Tammany by a substantial majority, and there
is no reason why the bill, simply because it is a Tammany
bill, should fail of passage. But there will also be other matters of
importance to come up for consideration. We sball, p*"rchance,
hear of several additional schemes to tunnel the East River, build
new bridges or in some way increase the facilities of the old. The
cable railroad men, if'-° may judge from past experience, will
not fail to throw the .o.ibany correspondents into convulsions of
indignation ; and the Riverside Driveway Commission may send a
bill to Albany, for tbeir adoption of the suggestion of tbe chairman,
that it would be well to drive over the site, in order to see what
they are about, indicates a stem determination on their part to
accomplish something. Andrew H. Green also will present for
legislative approval a measure for the consolidation of .such of the
metropolitan district as lies within the boundary of this State. In
short, there will be plenty of matters of the first importance before
the two Houses ; and it will go hard with New York if we do not
fare better than we did last year.





THE people of this city are remarkably inconsistent in their
present clamor against Commissioner Beattie because the
streets are not clean. Tbe streets of tbis city are not any dirtier
now than they were before the election. The dirt that lies even in
our main thoroughfares is not by any means new ; and everyone
in the dty knows that it remains there solely because the Street
Cleatiinic Department exists primarily not for the benefit of citizens
or taxpayers, but for the beneficof a certain number of politicians.
There baothiag peculiar about, the streets pf NewYork so that
th$y cannot be kepitas oleafi as those of any city. The only thing
peculiar is tt^ejitMn that is adpftted for keeping them iu a proper
oonditifOn. 8op|)0aing.a laicerailroad company were to select its
oAeeMfKHnaniKic^eer Mk«an .keepers^ and, emptoy oondu^ctorf,





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