May 7, 1899





Record   and   Guide.





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VoL. XLIX,





MAY  7,  1892.





No. 1,260





THE stock niarkpt continues to have no features beyond dullness
and some underlyiiig streũgth. Its condition Í8 one of wait-
ing for incitiũg motive, and according to the nature of that motive,
when it shall appear, the professional element may move prices
at will.





THE distinguishing feature of the continental stock exchanges
continues to be the advance in price of the Geroian, Prussian,
Austrian and Hungarian loans, due to the low rMtes for money.
Italiaa securities 'are also somewhat stronger, becaiise of the
serious and successful efforts of the government towards retrench-
ment of expenditure. In Berlin, conservative bankers are of
opinion tbat the bottom has beeo reached, and if there is any
movement at all in the future it will be ;in the direction of a rise.
Theproposed visit of the Czar to Berlin is exciting a great deal of
comment. It has had the effect of nutting a damper
on the press campaign against Russia: and if it should
turn out true that Russia is willing to make important
tariff concessions to Germany under a commercial treaty. fĩrst an
armistice may be expected, and then a sort of an alliance between
the German press and Russia. It might be the beginning of a
change in the whole political situation. The prospects for any
even fairly cheerful outcome to the Argentine diflSouIties it appears
aregrowiDg more and more hopeless. The Economist goes so far
as to say that " theonly practical qiiestion at presenc appears to be
as to the extent of tliat cutting down of ihe country's Iiabilities
which will ultimately have to be faced." Vigorous attempts have
been made to buoy up the market by those who are under the
necessity of unloading upon it the mass of securities
under which they are laboring. Various nieasures have
been atSempted to this end, and although they have succeeded at
times in putting a lather brighter appearance upon matters this
appearance is merely superficial and the'intrinsic condition of the
country remaius unaltered. On the other hand, English Colonial
securities, which have been very much depressed of late, are now
beginning to pickup, responding, particularly, in the case of tbe
Australian issues to the iraproved economic conditions of those
colonies. What this improvement amounts to may be gathered
from the fact that the exports of Australian produce were some
£7,000,000 larger last year than they wore in 1890: £9,000,000 larger
than in 1889; £14,000,000 larger than in l»f8, and more than £20 -
000,000 larger than in 1887.





r I iHE government of the United States. needless to point out, is
■*- perhaps the largest promoter of building on earth. At any
moment it has at least a full score of important edifices either in
proceas of construction or in process of planning. It is equally
needless to point out that, despite tbe advantages accruing from
large expendilures, ample sites and the absence of that haste and
commercial restriction which are present, ordinarily, iu private
building enterprises, government architecture is one of the sorriest
manifestations of artistic incapacity to be witnessed in the country.
It is everywhere dull, stiff, formal; so much mere indifferent draw-
ing translated into stone, and has more of the machine-made spirit
about it than Grand Rapids furniture. Taken as a whole, it is in
no sense indicative—as it should be—of national taste, national
capacity, or even national incapacity. The most that it indicates is
mediocrity, under Ihe surveillance of officialism. Indeed, if it were
only a little worse there might be more hope for it. The trouble,
of course, is that the government persists in maintaining a design
factory in Washington, the operatives in which are apparently
choseu accordingtoindifference toarchitectural sensations. Usu-
ally a man of some little capacity is put in charge of
it, and is ofKcially regarded as responsible for the plans.
As a matter of fact the, designs are turned out
by his " hands," inen concerning whom the presumption is
that they would be elsewhere hadthey any ability much abovethat





of the average draughtsman in the average architect'soffice. Even
if there were no obviously better methods for the government to
adopt to procure designs for its buildings, the unsatisfactory results
of the existing system would alone make evident the need for an
effort to establish some more efficient plan. The proper course,
however, ís plain enough; the plans for all impnrtant government
buildings should be obtained by competition, the terms and condi-
tions of which should be fixed by some representative of the gov-
ernment. say the supervising architect, assisted bysome recognized
professional authority. The Record and Guide has been preach-
ing on this topic for some time now, and last week it published
interviews with Mr. E. H. Kendal and Mr. Stanford White con-
cerning tbe getting of plans for the new Custom House in this city.
The daily press is taking up the matter, and a bill has passed the
House of Representatives authorizing the supervising architect to
seek for designa beyond the incapacity of his own office. Such a
measure cannot becomea law too speedily, nor for the good repu-
tation of this country in the matter of architecture can the super-
vising architect avail  himself ot its privileges too freely.





THE prospects for the municipal electinn are already beginning
to be discusaed in the newspapers. Two predictiona are being
very confidently made. One is that the Republicana will run a
senarate ticket, and the other is that Tammany will elect any can-
didate which the organization chooses to nominate. Both of these
predictions appear to be tolcrably safe. By its action during the
municipal election of 1890 the Republican local machine did not at
all commit itself to a continuance of the same course, and evcn if it
had, the failure of the People's Municipal League to elect Scott
would constitute a sufficiently plausible argument for a retui n to
the time-honored policy of running a faithful Republican candi-
date. Undoubtedly considerable pressure will be brought to bear
on the machine by the better class of local Republicana—particu-
larly those associated with the new City Club—butgeneral party con-
siderations will be enough to overrule any arguments wliich these
Republicans could urge. A sepárate local ticket wiUbe considered
necessary for the success of the national ticket. With such a can-
didate in the field it is difficult to understand how the opposition to
Tamraany can enter the campaign with any chance of a pros-
perous outcome. Even if all the opposing interests should be
concentrated on the Republican candidate—a possibility which
is very remote—the issuecould be plausibly made partisan. and that
would be sure defeat. It is not worth trying to jMedict at this
distance what form thecontest wiU take. As to the result there
appears to be no doubt ; but in spite of this foregone conclusion
the election will have a certain significance. In the first place it
will show how far capable are the leadera of the new City Club to
manage their opportunities and make the best of a ])retty had busi-
ness. It is certainly a far more promising organization than the
People's Municipal League, and as the custodians of New York's
timid hope for eventual emancipation from Tamraany nile it
occupies such a responsible position that the political astuteness
which it can develop will be awaited with sorae curiosity. Not
only this, however. There are indications, of which the forraa-
iion of this City Club is only one, that dislike to Tammany
methods of government is becoming deeper and somewhTt more
pervasive than it was. The exhibition which the last Legislature
made of itself was so sickening that what intelligence and pride
there is in the comraunity must have been shocked. We do not
think that this increased feeling can make itself effective at the
coming election ; but if it exists it can show what stuff it is raade
out of.





THE business of projecting electric railways in Westchester
County and thereabouts is having a great booni, and if one-
half of theni are built that delightful section will soon be well sup-
plied with surface transit. In truth. they are very iiiuch needed
at present, and the building ot them will be a great boon to the
residents. As things are at present, it is alraost necessary to have
a horse or carriage unless one lives near a railway station, and
these electric rnads will consequently greatly stimulate the
settleraent of the suburlian towns by people of raoderate
means. We hardly need say. however, that these electric
roads are essentially subsidiary; they must be operated as feeders
to rapid transit routes connecting Westchester County with the
southern part of Manhattan Island. Without such routes V/est-
chester County and the northern wards of the city can never be
built up in the way that the Oranges are built up; and unless such
a building up takes place these electric roads can never be worth
much, for the present population could support only those which are
very advantageously situated.





THE measure passed by the Legislature constituting a Board of
Commissioners of Land Records has been signed byGovernor
Flower, 80 that an intelligent effort can now be uiade to index
existing papers affecting title in this city on some intelligible plan.
Some of the papers have criticised the law during the week on the