Record and Guide
989
PRICE PER YEAR IN ADVANCE SIX DOLLARS
PuMi/hed every Saturday,
Telephone, Cobtiamdt 1370.
Communications should be addressea to
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J, 1. L[ND&'ET, Busmess Manager.
"Entered at the Post-Oj^ice al Tew York, N. Y., asseaond-ela»8 matter."
Vol. LXIII. t
MAY 27, 1890.
No. 1,028.
c
The apparent shrinkage In the imports of Great Britain this year
Is due to their being stated pecuniarily; quantities are on the
whole larger than they were last year. In wheat and flour, for
instance, the i^antlties increased 1.7%, while their values Re¬
clined 13.4%. The comparison Is raade with the period when the
Leiter boom in wheat was being manipulated. There is no les¬
sening of th? demand, therefore, and with wheat prices advanc¬
ing as they are likely fo do from natural causes this time, the
monetary equivalent will grow. It Is somewhat remarkable that
the Increased output of gold is accompanied by a demand that
absorbs all the supplies and keeps up the standard rates of dis¬
count In the European money centres at comparatively high fig¬
ures. The fact that the Bank of England flnds itself unable to
increase its holdings and is In fact less successful than the con¬
tinental banks in this respect, keeps lenders In a cautious mood.
At the moment there is little or no need for anxiety, but look¬
ing ahead for a few months there is very little doubt that rates
for money wiil be quite high under the heavy agricultural au-
OVERING of shorts accounts wholly for the strength In i tumn demand; that is, high as compared with recent experience.
prices seen in the last two days. Had stocks been- plentiful
enough, of course, the movement would have been the other way,
but there was an appreciable lessening of the desire to sell on
the part of holders, which did not fail of Influencing the action
of speculative shorts. Bond buying has also been resumed with
considerable force, the most speculative Issues coming in for
much of the public favor in the absence of better ones on which
to bestow their affections. It is not unlikely that stocks will
follow the lead of bonds now that pressing liquidation seems to
have been accomplished, but there is nothing In the situation
to warrant the expectation of more than a temporary recovery,
or to dispel the belief that the lowest prices of the season have
not yet been attained. Money has become easier, the interregnum
between two periods of heavy demand having been begun, and
the condition of general business continues to he satisfactory.
In tbe iron trade demand increases and prices advance. The
probabilities for expansion in this line are not to be estimated
because it is not known, but only vaguely surmised, how far tho
use of iron is spreading in all directions, particularly in struc¬
tural lines. Abroad this fact is being ascertained as a result of
experience and is having good effect on iron and coal shares, and
here its infiuence must similarly prevail as the results of the
growth of the business are shown in distributions to stock¬
holders.
LATE advances in the prices of industrial shares In the New
York market, phenomenal as they were, are being alto¬
gether outdone in the London mining market, where speculation
in West Australians has beeu as rampant as It ever was in
Kaflirs. One issue with the suggestive name of Golden Horse¬
shoe, having a par value of fl has sold at £45, against £5 10s.
a few months previously. Some two shilling, or flfty-cent
shares have sold at £1 10s., or $7.50, and there are a number of
others that have also made large advances. London, Paris and
Berlin have, too, all been buyers of Kaffirs on continued in¬
creases of output. The returns for the flrst four months of the
year are of 1,695,169 ozs., or an increase of 422,336 ozs. on the
production of the same period last year. Indeed, foreign mar¬
kets are doing very little in anything besides these issues,
though it is not altogether impossible that German industrials
will take another upward turn. A halt was called to the specu¬
lation in these issues because of the stringency in the money
market, but as that has been removed and the Industrial move¬
ment upon which this speculation was based shows signs of in¬
creasing rather than decreasing in volume, it may be that the
situation will call for further increases in quotable values. ;
There appears to be no end in sight to the demand for iron for
all purposes, or to the willingness of the consumer to stand in¬
creases in prices. Iron manufactures appear to be limited only
by the ability of the blast furnace to turn out the pig, for which
there is a continually increasing demand. Unprejudiced com¬
ment on the German meat inspection bill is to the effect that it
is a measure of protection to the German farmer only, which will
if passed inflict great hardships upon the working classes who
are the largest consumers of American meats. Pufchases and
sales of rentes, through Treasury agents, indicate a very pros¬
perous condition of affairs in France inasmuch as the former
are increasing and the latter decreasing. The collection of in¬
direct taxes, affords further evidence of the same fact in tho
amount collected being substantially above the estimates.
Prices on the Vienna bourse have advanced moderately lately,
a movement that haa its Importance chiefly through comparison
with the stagnation that has been characteristic of that centre
for so long. Government reports of the condition of the crops
in Hungary are not satisfactory; wheat is doing fairly well, but
Other grains have sulered from unfavorable climatic conditions.
INCREASED MORTGAGES AND THEIR CAUSES.
LIKE all other current statistics pertaining to the real estate
business, those relating to mortgages, show such a re¬
markable increase in the volume of business done that they ex¬
cite interest and deserve special consideration. The value of the
mortgages filed In each of the past four years has been consid¬
erably over 5200,000,000, and in our last Issue we showed that
this year, up to that time, 7,834 mortgages had been flled, hav¬
ing a face value of ?160,G58,S97, while similar flgures for the same
time last year were but 6,797, and $111,618,723, respectively. Four
main reasons are given for these increases, namely: First, the
Increased borrowing that always accompanies activity In the
realty market; second, the shifting of loans to take advantage
of lowered interest rates; third, the borrowing of money on real
estate to meet the demands for funds in other lines; fourth, the
larger advances made on realty as confldence In Its Improved
value increases. To these must be added a flfth cause as apply¬
ing to the Increased totals, the borrowings by corporations on
bonds secured by mortgages in which plant and franchises are
pledged as well as the real estate that may be owned by the
Issuing companies. In considering the justice of these deduc¬
tions from the situation It Is necessary to examine the figures
themselves and to analyze them, separating the real estate mort¬
gages proper from the corporate mortgages and striking aver¬
ages for the purposes of comparison. This may be done by
means of the following table In the presentation of which par¬
ticular attention Is called to the column of satisfaction pieces,
which is now published for the first time and which is very nec¬
essary to a proper understanding of the subject we are now dis¬
cussing; Ij \\ â– ->â– .'. !! .]
Satisrao^
------Mortgages on realty.-------, (ion
No. Amount. Averaee. pieces. No.
Tear.
lRt>2............ ]4,44.S
imz............ jrt.iaf)
lfi<i4............ -i3.i\r-,2
IRO."!............ ir,.0"n
i.siin............ 1". 057
1.907............ ifi.^ns
ISOS............ l.'S.S.I?
1S99 (to May 23). 8,107
?IS7.3TS,-iT2
11?. SIR.finS
17,1.1-1.140
?f1f>.?1(!:74t
2t^,'}^o.7•o3
214.71 TvOfiO
?ns n4.'i!>r>
124,C5S,S9r
$12.f>(!0
12,rmO
]l,.-57
14.4?ll
13,?7.X
13.122
15,903
II.RTO
lo.oas
n.oon
12.^70
n.173
lo<:io
22.7(!ri
6,781
Corporate
:—morfjragea.-i
No. Apnrra''t.
2 $fi rifio.nno
1 12,5™ noi)
2 fi.rifwnno
1 15,000,000
2fl 500.000
.sn.non.ooo
18,000,000
No one who has followed the course of the realty market for
any length of time will refuse to admit that Increased borrow¬
ing accompanies activity there. A lively market depends on a
large speculative movement for its existence and as speculation
in land means to a very large extent building, borrowing also
follows as a matter of course In order that Improvements may be
made and the speculative movement carried to Its legitimate
conclusion. It is not. therefore, necessary to dwell further upon
that point; the weekly records prove quite clearly that of late
borrowing for improvements have swelled the totals of mort¬
gages filed to a considerable extent. It is natural to suppose with
lowered interest rates that, wherever possible, loans have been
shifted to take advantage of them; this view is not only sup¬
ported by natural inference, but also by the more convincing
figures, showing the increases In the number of mortgages filed
since 1894. when the accummulations of capital first began to
force down Interest rates, and the corresponding increase In the
number of satisfaction pieces entered for record In the Regis¬
ter's office. It should be stated that the figures last referred to, in¬
clude satisfactions of chattel mortgages; but, as these are prob¬
ably not more than one .per cent of the total and as two per cent
would certainly more than cover them, the value of the figures
for our purpose is in nowise vitiated by that fact. Without these
figures It would not have been possible to so clearly show that
the Bhifting of loans had had considerable proportions.
As to the drawing upon real estate for means to enlarge the
trade and commerce of the community, that Is a point not so
easily demonstrated as the others, hut we haye it from the best
â– ^Pl