June iS, 1898.





Record and Guide





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Busii/Ess juto Themes Of GEiiER^L Ikto^m.,

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"Entered at the Post Office al New Tork, W. T., as second-class matter.'





Vol. LXI.





JUNE 18, 1S9S.





1,570





THE failure of a plunger on either side of the Atlantic has
had the effect of checking operations in tlie Stock Market.
Of the Leiter failure, with which we are most concerned, all thj-t
can he said at present is that it could easily have been worse;
but, as the public knows nothing of the terms hy which a judicial
wind-up was prevented, it is not possible tO' say whether or no
there are evil consequences yet to arise from it. Of the opera¬
tion in which the younger Mr. Leiter was engaged, it may be
said that the manner of its conclusion, so far- as he is personally
concerned, is pretty generaUy approved. Corners are not liked
even in speculative circles, and the individual who wants every¬
thing in any particiUar direction is apt to make enemies. The
Hooley failure in London only affects us indirectly, but it also
aliords the moral that the individual should confine his ambi¬
tion within reasonable limits. If these failures have had a bad
effect, the announcement of the war loan has had a good one,
with the latter more permanent in its influence than the former.
This operation may draw attention away from the Stock Market
for a little while, but its uUimate effect cannot fail to he good.
The War Revenue Act, as a whole, will serve another purpose
besides that of putting the Government in funds for carrying on
the war, it will put an end to the deficiencies hetween receipts
and expenditures, which have heen so marked a feature of the
Treasury returns for a long time past and which made bond
issues necessary from time to time; and otherwise complicated
the situation. Only a great reverse of some kind can materially
affect the public confidence at this time, and of that there does
not seem any likelihood whatever. The appearance of the Ger¬
man fleet at Manila raised some serious fears of political com¬
plications early in the week, hut it appears that Germany is only
getting into position so that if Uncle Sam's hat blows off she can
recover it for him and claim a reward.





ONE of, and perhaps the most important question discussed
abroad just now is that of Indian currency and the proposal
to give it a gold basis. As the largest producer of silver in the
world the United States is also' directly interested in this ques¬
tion. As far as can be judged from what appears in the press,
the advocates of a continuation of the silver basis modified to
meet new circumstances, have the best of it. Their position is
supported, by the difficulty and expense that would attend the
creation and protection of a sufficient gold reserve and the un¬
certainty that exists as to the success of recent adoptions of the
gold standard by countries not financially impregnable. Italy,
Spain and other European countries are gold in name only; in
Austria, Russia and Japan the gold standard is still an experi¬
ment whose success may be reasonably doubted in the last two.
Like the Parliamentary system of government, which everyone
desires, the gold standard does not seem to suit all nations. It
is very donhtful whether in India it would prove anything better
than the expensive luxury it is in Japan. In GO years India has
imported Rx 146,685,000 in gold and coined Rx 2,414,000; in the
same period her importations of silver amounted to Rx 375,067,-
000 and her coinings of that metal to Rx 354,446,000. These metal
importations represent net favorable Indian trade balances in the
period mentioned, and the proportions" of the two metals coined
ought to show the direction of the natural demand for currency.
The country seems to have gotten along very well, with an an¬
nual increase in the silver currency of from Rx 5,000,000 to
Rx 6,000,000 untii five years ago, when the mints were closed to
the free coinage of silver, since when there have been frequent
money panics with discount rates become normally high. At
present the figure is about 9%, and has been 14%, as compared
with a normal rate of 6% in times when there were no restric¬
tions on coinage,





SUCH facts as have become public relating to the recent sale
of Astor property on Avenue A and side streets tend to
show the progressive development of values of improved prop¬
erty on Manhattan Island. Withoutgoing back to the period when
the tract in question was rm-al in character, some very striking
increases in value can be shown. Generally it appears that
ground rents have heen about doubled in each of the last two
periods of 20 years and, as rates of interest have heen very much
reduced in the same time, it may be taken for granted that the
value of the freehold has much more than doubled. We are given
to understand that the tenants of the property on the north and
south sides of 4111 and Sth streets and on the east side of Avenue
A have the privilege of renewing their leases. On the streets
the ground rent for a renewal of 20 years is to be $750 a year
and on the avenue for a renewal of 10 years $950 a year. The old
leases on the streets, which are about to expire, were for 20
years at $375 a year. On the avenue leases were made 50 years
ago at $175 a year, running for 20 years; for a renewal for a
second term of 20 years the ground rent was $375; a second re¬
newal was made for 10 years at $950 per annum, at which rental
tenants have the privilege of renewing again for 10 years. These
ngures apply to the property released back to the Astor estate
by Mr. Morgenthau under the new agreement. Whether they ap¬
ply toother Astor property in the same section we dO'not know. The
representatives of the .^.stor estate maintain a not unnatural reti¬
cence regarding their business toward others than princip'als iu
their dealings, a policy about which no one has any right to com¬
plain; but, presumably, they will not make flesh of one and
fowl of another. During the period covered by the flgures pTe-
viously given, many of the leases have changed hands, the orig¬
inal holders receiving quite large prices for their rights. A
striking example of the growth of value in this section can be
instanced in the northwest corner of Avenue A and 7th streets.
This parcel was leased 39 years ago for 20 years at $300 a year,
At the end of that time a renewal for a like period was obtained
at $600 a year, and we are informed that the asked price for the
fee to-day is $40,000. As value takes time to grow, the tenant has
had a good thing, even if the landlord is now the beneficiary of
the increment. As in connection with the late sale it was re¬
ported that tenants on the unsold portion of the Astor property
in this section were to have the option of renewing or purchas¬
ing, it may be well to state that we hear that the latter portion
of this report is not correct, the estate not considering it de¬
sirable to sell parcels here and there and have its own hold¬
ings thereby scattered, which would be the result of such a
policy.





OUR objections to the suggested change in the plans for the
new Hall of Records are fully sustained by the opinions
of two of tbe three experts on whose recommendation the design
of Mr, Thomas was selected, which will be found in another col¬
umn. The architect, whose judgment, as Prof. Ware very prop¬
erly points out, ought to control, has been on record
for some time as opposed to any change in his de¬
sign. There is another objection that ought to have
weight, and that is the addition of five stories to the
building would convert it into a veritable skyscraper, and tend
to stultify the position of the city toward the whole question cf
the limitation of the height of buildings. Section 43 of Chapter
378 of the Laws of 1897, more co-mmonly known as the Charter,
authorizes the Municipal Assembly to regulate and restrict the
height of buildings in this city. The Council will certainly,
sooner or Jater, be called upon tO' exercise this authority. What
position will the city authorities be in to pass upon this im¬
portant question if they are at the same time putting up a
building of immoderate height? The Hall of Records as now d-3-
signed with nine stories and mezzanines will be as high as a
twelve or thirteen-story ofiice building; the addition of five
stories would leave it few rivals in height in its vicinity, and
would, moreover, practically force upon the city a policy of ap¬
proval of high buildings before the Municipal Council has had
an opportunity of deciding whether they ought to exercise the
authority to fix a limit conferred upon them by the Legislature.





IT is beginning to be seen now that the Jingo proclamation
with which the war started, that Havana would be taken
within thirty days, needs "extension," like a hastily made note.
How much extension, is the question. We must all confess that
events so far have tended in some measure to justify the warn¬
ings and fears of our conservative advisers who cautioned us at
the outset that war with Spain would prove to lie a longer and
more complicated affair than the Jingo imagined, Cuba is
hardly yet invaded, and the task does not become less arduous
or costly the more it is studied by the military. The insurgent
army, if we may believe Washington statistics, has turned out to
be so small a body of men that no wonder people are rubbing





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