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robniflTTM893
Record and Guide.
301
wMimii.
ESTABUSHED-^ iiyWpH BV^ 186B,
Dr^ifi) 10 RpAj. Estate . BuiLoif/o A|i,crfiTECTUi^ >{ousehold DESfflifTnt,
Basnkss m(d Themes or Ge^ei^I. 1i^te(i,est .
PRICE, PER YEAR IN ADVANCE, SIX DOLLARS.
Published every Saturday.
TBLBPaONB,......OOBTLANnr 1370
Oommnn 1 cations should be addr:Baed to
C. W. SWEET, 14-16 Vesey Street,
J. 1. LINDSEY. Businesa Manager.
Brookltn Opficb, 276-282 Washington Street,
Off, Post Offios.
'Enlertd al the Post-office at New York, If. T., as second-class matter."
Vol. LV.
rEBRUARY 9, 1895.
No. 1,404
For additional Brooklyn matter, see BrooMyn Dejaartnietit immediateli
folloteing Kew Jersey records {page 230 .
/CONGRESS haviug refused to assist it the Administration is
^-^ thi'own upon its own resources tomaintaiu a sufficient gold
reserve. These resources seem to consist entirely of issuing
bonds for gold. But for the fact that the revenues of the gov-
erumeut are in escess of disbursements this would aft'ord very
little comfort, but with the revenues increased in the ordinary
way and iu an extraordinary way by the sale of bonds the situa¬
tion is uot as serious as it was some mouths ago. It wiJl be in
the power of the Treasury to reduce the volume of outstanding
gold obligations by whatever amount of them is paid in, either
for cuslom and revenue dues or for redemption in gold, which
it may not be positively necf ssarj to reissue in payment of the
government's obligations. Thus the danger n hich may threaten
the ability of the goyernmeiit to maintain gold payments may
soon be materially reduced by the curtailment of the floating
currency redeemable from the gold reserve. The fact, too, that
part of the relief conies from abroad is also a good feature. But
all this notwithstanding, the situation cannot become wltolly
Batiiifactory until the government is relieved from the necessity
of these miserablft-siiifts to maintain its honor and credit.
The position of the Treasury will be a subject for disquiet in
commercial circles so long as there exists even a probability
that it may at some period be compelled to suspend gold pay¬
ments. There is uo sign yet apparent tliat the next Congress
willrelievc the disappointment felt at the omissions of this;
the kuowii opinions of its members do not warrant any such
hope, so that there is from all appearances a long spell of cur¬
rency agitation before us, Reports of trade are no better than
they have been this year and happily no worse. Railroad earn¬
ings are picking up a little and eucouraging holders of railroad
secujJtipa.somewhat, tho,igh when the returns for the present
period of stoiaome iu, which will be in tvro or three weeks
time, they will havfi-^xencouuter some bad showings, all of
which will doubtless have til'.- usual influence on speculative
operations ; other operations the-are positively none.
TS China or Japan the humbug? WasMpa insincere in her
-*- -desire for peace, or did Japan always iutAto break up the
negotiations? So far as the circmnstaoces whiL.the West is
permitted toknow will enable an opinion to be foimedt IS Japan
that 18 the really obstinate parly. She intends to be tug" at
pon-er m the East, and her armies have not yet done all thdd
requiredofthemiucarryingoutherpolicy. Until Chmaprostrates
herself at the feet of her foe the war will go on, aud the victor
18 apparently not at all anxious that China should be in ahurry to
formally humiliate herself. Further analysis of British trade
returns for 1894 shows its unsatisfactory character ; the exports
lucreased only 3.5 per cent, while prices decreased 4.5 per cent.
Keturnsot trade recently issued show that France is becoming
aUflost independent of foreign nations for her supply of meat
obtaining it mostly from Algeria and Tunis. December imports
decreased $12,000,000, but exports increased $15,000,000 In
berinany there are no iudicalious of impiovement in trade;
Plentiiul money keeps the market for securities strong, though
there is yet j little activity. Everybody seems to be waiting for
nrSi? '^ !f ^'^"''^ ""'^'^^^ • "^^^^ ^^^ ^«^° «o'»« decline but
ZlTf '?!,'' "''*'"'^ °*' "" ^'"'â– "P- Hungary has all the gold i t
eSetlT Tf"T'***"" ^^ **^^ dual-Empire, and Austria
t? n ?^ ^^'''"Pl^te the collection of her requirements this win-
Se Tb ?'"/• '** ^^ P"*^ '" circulation in about two years-
oSani Jr r.;!"'^" '""''" """''"^ ' "^^"^" **^ ^^ thoroughly dis-
is in?? f^ '^' '' **"" "*â– '•'"' ^^^^^"^ " I^y fi»«°"«I trouble
s expected in Vienna. The Anglo-Austrian Sugar Refinery
of SSsTnon ""^T "^"^'^^ '^^ campaign of, 1893-4 with a loss
raoidtr^^^?'''",?. ^â– '*' ^'^"^ ^''^'"''^ •'^ $1,300,000. The plaus for
«Wa transit in Vienna are nearing completion. They eontem
plate anetwoih of elcclric railways, eprtsding in ckvin eccen¬
tric rnys from the centre of Ihe town to ;(hc faithest Euluihs,
and with linrs underground inlLe tcwn and Uvel with the
streets in the suburbs.
rpHE opposition which is formulating against the Doclt Meas-
-*- ure now before the Legislature at Albauy should not over¬
look the really dangerous step which the hill proposps of
removing the su|iervision of the conetruclion of jiier buildings
friim the Buildiug Dejiailment where it is now lodged to Ihe
Dock Deparlment. Il isnu opeu secret Ihat these two depart¬
ments of the City Government have been in opposition for somo
time about Ihe character of t]:e buildirgs which should be per¬
mitted on the docks. The [Building Department, as is Quite
right, has insisted upon a kind of structure, fire-re&isling if not
fire proof. The Dock Deparlment would prefer, or, at any rate,
would allow flimsy, inflammable structures. The pieis which
the latter department constructed lately are really ingenious
devices for sprendlng fire and are eminently well calculated to
extt nd a conflagration around the city, and make the work of
firemen as difficult as possible. The piling is all of wood, and
the floors of the piers are of the same material. The plea of the
Departmeut, we believe, is that conditions here in New yoik
change so quickly Ihat something flimsy and inexpensive is
what the case requires. Competent judges say that the piling
should at Icist be .sheathed with iron above low water mark, and
the fl-oora of the pieis protected by a layer of ashes or some other
non-combustible material. Floating oil or lighted embers
would uot then be so certain to extend disaster. There is no
reason iu the world why the Building Department should uot
continue to exercise control, not, indeed, over the piers them¬
selves, but over the kind of buildings ihat may be erected upon
Iheni. These huildings. it should be remembered, are not con¬
structed by the Dock Department, but l»y the lessees; and Ihe
reasonable requirements of the Building Department in tl e
interests of public safety costs the Ciiy nothing, aud are not
seriously objected to by the lessees themselves.
BEFORE the discu-ssion regarding reform in city matters
grows lukewarm would ifc not be well to iuvesfcigate an
evil of long standing by means of whieh office hoi der.s and petty
politicians secure far iu advance, information about street open¬
ings and other public imorovemeuts which enables them to ad-
"\ise capitalists where profitable investments can be made. The
"leaks" are chiefly in the Board of Street Opening and Improve¬
ments and the ottice of tbe Commissioner of the 23d and 24th
Wards, and there is a lurking suspicion that attaches of Ihe De¬
partments of Parks can be included among the guilty ones.
Particulars o£ the proposed action of ot^cials charged with the
duty of deciding what iinprovements shall be made should be
given to the public as early as possible, even before definite
plans are discussed. If this were done the speculator whose
politic.il connections enable him to buy at low figures and sell jit
a substantial a'lvance would no longer eujoy au advantage over
other buyers who purchase with a view to permanent invest¬
ment.
WE have been so long accustomed to talk about our coming
to a silver basis that people have ceased to believe it
possible; yet, let anyone examine the bills in his pocketbook
and he will see how a thing may come about eo gradually that
he will not notice it, and let him ask himself on whom would the
loss tall if from any circumstance the Government ^h.-T-'cT he
come unable to maintain silver on a parity with gold^ Here is
a recent experience. A gentleman cashed a check for one hun-
^,,^dollars at a New York bauk, and at his request the paying
tg]]pj.ave him two fifty-dollar bills. His curiosity caused him
toexan"^ them. J They both called for silver dollars. He next
drew tf"*>'"^'^51 "^'^''^^'^d received one ten-dollar and one
five-da*'^' ^'^^^ ^''^ ^"d two five-dollar Treasuiy notes. He
handed ver ^^ ten-dollar bill in payment for a $4 article at
a Broadvay »*'^'®' '^"d "eceived in change a five aud a one dollar
bill both "''''^ for silver. At another store he tendered ihe
fi^g.jlyll, bill iu payment for a small article, and received be¬
sides smi; change four one dollar silver bills. Later examining
fourteen i'l^^s that came into his hands he found it made up
of: Treasui no**""' ^v^ dollars in one bill; greenbacks, two
dollars io tw&*''-'*' silver, seven dollars, in oue five dollar bill
and two oue d/'"" ^'"^- "^^"^ ^^ happened that ia a short space
of time.'t>149 i^''^^*^'^™^'"*''^^^^^"^^''^ which $132 repre^
sented silver d^'^^'^' *^^ Treasury notes and $2 legal tenders,
andnoneof wif^'*^''^^*'^^^'^™^"'^'^'^^^''^"t^^y*^0'»]'e'^ed under
any and all fi''""^*'"''^®^ *<* l'^?'" ^^Id. This though a remark¬
able expc''"'^ ^^ similar to the unconscious experience of most
people of **^ present day. Taken in connection with the abso¬
lute di.'jap^^'"^"*^*' ^^ ^"'d and gold certificates it shows that
the bank.'"**" '^^^t are discriminating in the class of money they
pay out, :'*'^''^ determined that if any part of (he circulating
medium's ^^^^ciates, as little as poseible shall do so in theii'hands. /