"November 31, 1891





Record  and  Guide.





647







ilil





^             \\          ESTABUSHED^1VW.CH21U^I868.

De/oth) to Rf^L Estwe . Buildi;/o Aj!.oi<iTE(rrji^E .Household Desof^toH,
Basii^Ess Alto Themes^ of CeSeiv^I 1jJT£i\est

PRICE, PER YEAR IIV ADVAIVCE, SIX DOLLARS.

Published every Saturday.





cation.   The report should receive careful and for the most part
favorable consideration.





Telephone      ....
Communications should be addressed to

C. W. SWEET,

J. 1. LINDSEY, Business Manager.





Cortlandt 1370.





14 &  16 Vesey St.





Vol. XLVIII





NOVEMBER 31,  1891.





No. 1,336





INDICATIONS have not been wanting during the past two days
of a return of the bull feeling which a couple of months ago
gave the stock market such a substantial rise. Operators, who
since the collapse of the earlv autumn movement have been
operating on the bear side, have now to all appearances turned
around and are buying stocks. For a few days things appeared to
be in the hands of the bears, when all of a sudden prices were
whisked up in a way that shows that the bulls have the market
well in hand. Northern Paciflc, for instance, sells at 69J^ on
Thursday; on Friday morning the news is not good, yet despite all
news it advances sharply. This shows the result of manipu¬
lation; but it is manipulation backed by a powerful senti¬
ment. Securities like the Richmond Terminal stocks and
bonds, which are among the weakest in point of conditions and
prospects, are sent up two points in sympathy with the general
rise. Whether it will continue or not is doubtful. Experienced
operators remember that for some cause or another the market
always declines just before or after the meeting of Congress. But, at
all events, the rise cannot long be delayed. About three years ago
Mr. Depew made a statement in St. Louis to a reporter, predicting
bankruptcy to a number of Western railroads, which statement
caused a serious decline in the stock market. Ue was right then,
and he is equally right now when he predicts prosperity, both to
the railways and to the country throughout the coming year.





WE publish in anotber column the report of the Real Estate
Exchange for the past fiscal year. The very satisfactory
results set forth therein show that the institution is in a better con¬
dition to-day than it has even been. The gratifying increase in
dividend is mainly due to the excellent management of the
Exchange during the past twelve months and to the new policy
which now is practically accepted with general satisfaction. The
management and the stockholders are to be congratulated.





THE report of the Special Committee of the Board of Education
appointed last spring to consider the important matter of
reform in our public school system proposes to remedy some, at all
events, .of the worst defects of our present methods. In their
organization and n.anner of instruction the schools of New York
City are far inferior, not only to the European schools which have
long had the benefit of the newer and better methods of teaching,
but to the schools of this country. This the committee admits,
and it suggests changes in the organization of our schools in then-
scope, in their manner of supervision and in their method of teach¬
ing. It is true that they do not touch upon the root of the diffl¬
culty, viz.: that public education in New York, like all other
branches of our city administration is so much a matter of politics
that professional educators of the best class, of which the colleges
are turning out an increasing number, have practically nothing to
say about the management of our schools, the machinery of which
is most intricate and clumsy. Indeed, the reference to this
matter by the committee is really very amusing. They
believe that if any of the Commissioners were paid "educational
experts" we should involve '"our school interests with politics in
such a way as to imperil the efficiency of our entire system." As
if the efficiency of our entire system was not at present threatened
by this vety cause. Unfortunately, however, it is probably true
that the liberal remuneration of some of the Commissioners witb a
view to obtaining educational experts would probably under preva¬
lent methods of appointment only serve to deteriorate the character
of the Board. But this does not abate one jot the necessity for such
experts, and no great improvement can be expected until they are
put in permanent possession. Some of the recommendations of
the commilteeare, however, very much to the point. The addition
of kindergartens would be in line with the best methods of initial
instruction; physical training should be added to the exercises, and
last, but not least, more attention should be paid'to lecbnicar edu-





Faots, Law and Sense.

THE Commercial and Financial Chronicle is a paper which
througb able management and long experience has devised a
complete and efficient machinery for the collection 'of financial
news of importance to the investing public. It is safe to say that
if any fact is known to any person or persons in a public sense, it
will De known to the Chronicle, and, if important, will brf published.
Whatever there is of the affairs of a raiboad corporation that the
Chronicle cannot flnd out, it is safe to say the stockholders will
be unable to ascertain. We are therefore somewhat surprised to
see in its last issue (Nov. 14th), referring to the new second mort¬
gage on the Lake Erie & Western Railroad, that the Chronicle
refers to the call for the special meeting of June 35, 1890,
and to the proxies used at that meeting, and says: "It would
seem clear from these therefore, that any stockholder
could have obtained information in regard to the matter.''
We have read the call for the special meeting, and have also read
the proxy referred to, and we fail to flnd in either any statement,
either expressly, or in substance and effect mentioning an> purpose
to impose a second mortgage on the property and assets of the road.
We have also searched the flies of the Chronicle, and we find no
announcement prior to that made in the issue of November 14th in
any way informing the public tbat the Lake Erie & Western Rail¬
road Co. either expected to make such a mortgage or that it had
done so. But not only has the Chronicle failed to give warning to
the public of this new second mortgage, but it published AprU. 36,
1890, iu advance of said meeting of June 3d, 1890, an account of the
objects and purposes for which the meeting was called, which pro¬
ceeds upon the clear understanding that the only issue of securities
or obligations contemplated at that meeting related to the acquisition
and equipment of the Fort Wayne, Cincinnati & Louisville Railroad
Co., being 133 miles in length, and that the issue of bonds or securities
for those purposes were to be at the rate of $10,000 of first mortgage
bonds for each mile of the newly-acquired property. The entire
article plainly implies that no further burden upon the property is
intended to be imposed at that meeting.

No one has suggested, and certainly we shall not suggest, that
the Chronicle intentionally misled any reader of its columns. The
fact is that it laid before the public openly and honestly all the
information which it possessed upon the subject of the meeting of
June 35, 1890, and that when it did so it believed that it was not
only telling the truth but the whole truth as to the objects and
purposes of that meeting. Its understauding then was the same as
the understanding of every stockholder and of Wall Street. We
would like to republish entire the article of April 36, 1890, page
590, referred to, but space here forbids, and we call upon the Chron¬
icle to set furth again in its own columns the article referred to.
We shall also take the liberty to ask the Chronicle, in the same
issue in which it makes such republication, to answer one or two
simple questions, after refreshing its recollection by its own former
publication.

First—Did the Chronicle in the article of April 36, 1890, or in
any other article published by it prior to last month, ever state that
the Lake Erie & Westem Railroad proposed to make a second mort¬
gage upon its.property? If so, when and where did the Chronicle
make such statement, and what was the precise language used to
convey that intelligence to the public?

Second—Would not the Chronicle in its article of April 36,1890,
have stated plainly that it was proposed to make a second mortgage
upon the entire property of the road, including the proposed
acquisition, if the Chronicle had understood that fact ?

Third—When did the Chronicle first understand or have knowl¬
edge that it was proposed to put a second mortgage on the property
of the company ?

We desire also to ask the Chronicle these further questions:

First—Did the words "second mortgage" occur anywhere either
in the notice of the meeting of June 35th, or in the proxies which
were solicited from the stockholders ?

Second—Is there anywhere either in the notice or in the proxy ii.
plain statement, even though not in express terms, that it was
intended to put a second mortgage on the property ?

Third—Does the Chronicle desire to be understood that it takes
the word " bonds" as having the same meaning as " mortgage," or
that the debentures of a company evidencing a debt are legally !and
in commo.a acceptation one and the same thing as a mortgage,
which operates as a speciflc transfer of the title to property ? "It is
only upon some such theory as that the word "bond" ineans
" mortgage," that the langiiage of the Chronicle wl'ere it says, "It
would seem clear from these (i. e. the notice and proxy) that'any
stockholder could have obtained information in regard to the
matter," is intelligible at all. Does the Chronicle wish to be so
understood ?

In previous articles we bave stated that there was an undue
concealment of tbe action taken at the meetin;g of June 35,1890,