ecord and Guiae





643









____-J^ _^     ,

^                                       ESTABLISHED-^ H,ABf;Hfil*i^l8S8.

Dented 1° R.E^L ESTAJZ.BmLOIfib Afi,ClfITECTUI^E .HoUSnfOLD DEGCHiATlMj,!

.Birsiiiess ajId Themes of GeiIei^VIi^terp*!..       '^^

PftlC£,   PER   YEAR,   IN   ADVANCE,   SIX   DOLLARS.

Published  every Saturday.
Tklkphohb,              _     .     .     .     .      Cortlandt 1370

Communloationa should he addreased to

C, W. SWEET, 14-16 Vesey Street.
J   T. LINDSEY, Business Manager.





"Entered al the Post-offiee al New Yorlc, N. Y., as secotidrctass mailer.'





Vol. LIX.





APRIL   17,  1897.





No. 1,518





About S^ilo,(lull.mill new buildings liave been planned tor so far this year.
Have you obtained your share of it? Do you know o! the many other large
jobs now bielne prepared, and of the hundi'eds of customers in your line who
are about lo come into market Cor materials? You can obtain this informa¬
tion daily from lbe F. W. Dodge Co. (Inc.), 310 Cth avenue, southeast corner
Ctb avenue and 20th street.

NOT only is there little or 110 lioiiie (Icnidiid for stocks, but
the stock mai-tet is also sutterinjj from the trouble abroad
in South At'ricau mitiiog: issxies, to which we refer iu the sric-
ceediug paragraph. Europe has all the week been a seller iu this
niarkefc and thi.s accounts for much of the weakness wc have
seen of late, es])ecially iu Reading, Atchison, Louisville and
other stocks which are traded in on both sides of the Atlantic.
Liist Spriug the London leaders in Kaffirs were lai'ge.speculative
buyers of Americans, and now that Kaitirs are getting panicky
attain they are- probably throwing over tlieir Aniericaos, for
which there is a market, though a email one, to support the
T^aflirs, for which there is practically none. In fact, our market
is inore depressed by what is occurring abrotid than by events at
home. The latter are ratlier f txvorablo to quotations than other¬
wise. If business is du!I. it is sound ; railroad men have been
encouraged by the decisions of its managers to keep the Joint
Traffic Association together pending a decision by the Supreme
Court of the United States; we have heard (he worst of the
flood news and the time is near when railroad earnings will
compare favorably with those of last year, the terrors of the
coming political campaign having sent their shadows far ahead
of the dates for the nominations. It was about this time last
year that business began to shiink up and it continued that pro¬
cess until the free silver candidate got the cold shoulder from
New York in the following August, and commerce confldence.
Believing that the business of the country is continuing the
process of building up, we think any liquidation forced hy the
circumstances ot the moment will aft'ord another good oppor¬
tunity for buying, with hope for good proflt in (he near futnre.





ACCORDING to all appearances another big slump in
Kaffirs is coming. The correspondent at Johannesburg
of The Ji(itni«))i.(s/(Loudon) gives a very gloomy picture of the
condition of the Band gold mining industry generally and of the
Biirnato enterprise especially. For the first he predicts, that
being unable longer t.i s(em tbe tide of mis-government and
taxation, the crisis will arrive at the end of this year at the
latest. Referring to the second, he says the Cousolidated lu-
ve.ftnient Cotupany is in a distinctly bad position; that it is
coinpk'teij' wrajiped up with the mining industry and especially
with tlic llarnato grouij of mines; (hat it advanced over
X1,0()0,(>00 to these mines, most of whicli are shut down or are
working at -i hw-s. Tlie coi'respondent further adds that the
Compiiiiy and Uarnato himself are the victims of the policy of
the lioer government. The political oouditiou in the Transvaal
and especially at Johannesburg as described by this correspon¬
dent is as forbidding as the financial, or more so. The publica¬
tion of this letter has had a good deal to do with the reports now
eirculating in London regarding Barnato's financial condition.
The Loudon market, in the entire absence of outside support,
cauuot take any large amount of mining shares without ntter
demoralization of quotations; perhaps not at all, eonsidei'ing
the delicate and dangerous condition of pol i tic b iu South Africa.
London, Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin markets are all interested
in tho outcome and are also, of course, with other European
markets, very sensitive to movements on the Turko-Grecian
frontier, where there are all the elements for a big explosion
unless disinterested powers can avert the tiring of tbe train,
ii^ncouraged by the shouts of the foolish, Greece has got herself
into a pretty mess, from which ouly the Great Powers cau extii-
cate her, and tbis will now probably ouly be done after she has
sult'ercd souicwliat at Turkey's hands and is ready to give bonds





for her good behavior in the future.    Under the influences of

these two matters of great importance, both iu their nature de¬
pressing, a renewal of speculation is impossible and ti curtail¬
ment of general busiuess most highly probable.





GOVERNOR BLACK having consented to give ahearingon
tbe Charter for the Greater New York before deciding
whether he will sign it or not, a vrayj strong and representative
delegation, in which the Real Estate Exchange, we arc glad to
say, will take a very prominent and honorable part, will go from
this city to urge him to withhold his signatute in the interest of
good government and the right of the people to decide upon the
form of government tbey shall have. Tbe Governor cannot be
blind to the fact that New York City as a whole is utterly op¬
posed to this cliarter, even if he may be justified in doubting
whether it is opposed to consolidation altogether, aa we ou the
ground kuow it to be, The charter has been condemned on one
ground or another by every non political association represent¬
ing the thought, intelligence, industry and wealth of the com¬
munity, ami we raay take it that these associations are most
thoroughly representative of the city. The manner of the pas¬
sage of the act containing tlu' charter, the throwing in tbe face
of a protesting community a known reverse of its wishes, is per¬
haps the most obj(;ctionable and dangerous thing about the
whole matter. It is trttnipling free goveinment underfoot in
the most wanton and disgraceful manner. This, themostimpor-
taiit bill that wiis ever before the Legislature of theState of New
York, was passed practically without debate oi' the observances
of any of the ordinary restrictions devised to prevent unwise
and hasty legislation, and with studied disregard of the opinion
openly and clearly expressed of the community most affected.
The action of the Legislature upon this bill forms about as un¬
desirable a precedent as can be fouud in all parliamentary his¬
tory since tbe day of popular government. If this bill becomes
law it will be going back to the days of edicts and nominal use¬
less franchises with a vengeance. No doubt the opponents of the
Charter will make a thorough case before tbe Governor and will
not fail to point out among the many objections to it the injury
that is being attempted to be done to free institutions through
it. The Charter has been examined from many points of view
aud from every oue of them fouud defective and calculated to
produeeinjury in as many particular directions. Two members
of the drafting commission, Mayor Strong and Mr. Low, could
uot as honorable men allow it to go to the Legislature without
calling attention to several quite radical defects, aud the errors
and dangers discovered since are legion. Now it is a question
whether the Governor of tiiis State will join forces with those
who would force this condemned and despised instrument upon
the -people of this city, despite their respectful, intelligent,
specific objections. Surely not.
—         ■

THK newspapers lat<'ly have referred frequently to the com¬
mercial prosperity which the chief European countries
are enjoying, particularly Great Britain and Germany. One
day the figures we read relate to the increase of Eugiish exports
and imports aud the next to the marvelous strides which the
Teutonic manufacturer is makiug in the markets of the world,
Tlie affairs of both tbese nations sharply contrast with our own,
which are become so stagnant and deplorably out of joint that
even the most hopeful believers iu the vitality of this country
find it difficult to preserve the old optimism which in the past
bas been one of our happiest possessions. It is notable that tha
talk oue hears now everywhere as to ways and means to bring
about an improYement in our condition runseutii'ely to political
remedies. Dependence is put wholly upou legislative action, as
though Congress were the heart of the nation and prosperity
solely a statutory affair. Last Fall the cry was that the new
administration would carry good times into Washington with
tbe baggage and other personal effects of the incoming govern¬
ment, and now confidence is pinned upou the Dingley biU. By-
aud-byitwill be something else—anything but tiie effort of
seventy millions of peoide dealing with the national resources
of a continent. It is useless to go into the endless controversy
ahout Protection and Free Trade, A theoretical determination
of the question is apparently impossible, but a certain amount
of practical msdom on the subject may be derived from experi¬
ence. For instance, regard the present commercial prosperity
of Great Britain and Gei'many. In the one case it has beeu
obtained with a free trade policy, in the other under protection.
Anyone is free to maintain, of course, that either of these
nations might be better off thau it actually ie witb an opposite
commercial polity, but the fact stands that both are well to do,
both progress uuder opposite regimes. The lesson app.irently
is that neither Free Trade nor Protection bas quite the force
which is theoretically ascribed to one aud the other. Under
either, if steadily adhered to, people may become industrially
gieat. The real evil {which tho aff'airs of this country exem¬
plify} is a shifting, uucertaip policy pei-iodically reyoUitioniziug