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June 10, 1899.
Kocord and Guid«
1089
ESTABUSHEI)^ MJWpH fiU^ 1868,
PRICC PER YEAR IN ADVANCE SIX DOLLARS
Fubtith^d every Saturday.
Tblbphomb, CosTLA:a>T 1370.
Oom muni cations should be addressed to
C. W. SWEET, 14-16 Vesey Street.
J. 2. LIND& ET, Business Mmiager.
"Bnter.:a a,' chi; fost-Osi'.e al If eiv Iork, N. T., as stoond-class matter."
Vol. LXITI.
JUNE 10, 1899.
No. 1,630.
THERE have been indications this week of a return of pro¬
fessional favor to the long side of the Stock Market; it
cannot be anything but professional favor because the public has
left the Street and will not return until the conditions are more
attractive than they-are at the moment. Doubtless their more
legitimate occupations fully employ the people who make the
market in active times, and, generally speaking, this is as satis¬
factory a feature of the situation as can be found. But it makes
the stock market dull, or moved only to liveliness by the spas¬
modic actions of the speculative element. The reasons for the
strength of prices this week are those given last week in this
column to show that a rally was probable, namely, that stocks
are so scarce that shorts find it difficult to cover, that money is
cheap and the condition of the country prosperous. In times
like these bear operations are rendered difficult, owing to the
confidence of the people in returned prosperity and the easy cir¬
cumstances of the community generally. This makes the process
of bringing prices down, even when buying has been so overdone
as was recently the case, a slow one. It also makes it easy for
one party of operators to put the market up on another when
short selling has been carried to the point of momentary impru¬
dence. That a beginning of a pretty heavy export movement in
gold has only been made is apparent, but this need not necessar¬
ily have a disturbing effect on prices, though its mechanical con¬
sequences would tend iw that direction. While business is
fiourishing and railroad earnings are now large, we have to face
the prospect of a poorer agricultural year than the country has
known for some time. The loss of product will to some extent
be compensated by increases in prices for grain, but it never hap¬
pened yet that either the railroads or the agricultural communi¬
ties were benefited by short crops no matter how much they
rehabilitated prices. However, whatever is unfavorable in the
situation can only aftect values to the extent that they have been
unduly inflated, in the belief that the exceptionally favorable
circumstances of the country of last year aud the year before
were to continue for ever. There is no need for pessimistic views.
Whatever is sound will hold, and whatever is deserving will ad¬
vance as soon as the public has discerned its merits. The way in
which Industrials respond to good news, while Rails are unaf¬
fected, is another proof of the soundness of our opinion that our
prosperity affects manufactures most, and that in industrial
shares, consequently, the most promise of profit is to be found.
THERE is evidently confidence in Lord Salisbury's ability to
dispose as successfully of the Transvaal difficulty as he
has of other equally dangerous matters in the past two or three
years. If this were noit the case the recently reported failure oC
the conference at Bloemfontein would have beeu followed by a
panic in "Kaffirs" at the three principal financial centres of Eu¬
rope. The fact that Paris and Berlin are deeply Interested in
South African enterprises lends strength to the situation, be¬
cause it deprives the Boers of that "outside assistance" that was
once the point of a celebrated telegram. It is lucky that this is
the case; for, should matters become so serious as to paralyze tiie
movements of the colossal capital invested in and around Jo¬
hannesburg, the disturbing effect would be felt all over the
world. Regarding other matters of business interest we note
that, notwithstanding a considerable strengthening of its re¬
serves and easier conditions in the outside market, the Bank of
England maintains its discount rate at 3%. That the investing
public do not feel quite easy either, appears to be the case from
its failure to subscribe the Japanese 4% loan, of which, the cable
reports, only 12% was taken and the rest left on the hands of the
underwriting banks. Unless the outlook brightens, the Russian
loan, about to appear, will receive similar treatment; not only is
this loan open to suspicion, because of the low material condition
of the Russian people, but it is also prejudiced by the political
feeling of the people who are asked to make it. An Interesting:
return has been made of the dividends paid upon 29 British steam¬
ship stocks in the past ten years. The average runs from 2ya%
to 11%, the low record being made by the line we are most famil¬
iar with on this side of the Atlantic, the Cunard. Other transat¬
lantic lines do not appear in the list, being run by close corpora¬
tions. The most profitable of the ocean going concerns were',
those trading with the far East and British colonies or posses¬
sions. From a maes of statistics relating to fiscal conditions in.
Australia it may be gathered that the colonies there are slowly
but surely gaining ground and recovering from their distress of
a few years back. Berlin advices are full of the extraordinary
activity in the coal, iron and steel trades and the consequent
speculation and boom in shares representing those industries.
At the same time Vienna advices are full of meanings over the
apparent impossibility of reconciling the views of Austria and
Hungary on the States Treaty, and the view is held that should
the hope of an amicable arrangement really have to be aban¬
doned a catastrophe must follow.
â– "T* HE work of the Commission on New Building Code is mak-
â– ^ ing satisfactory progress, and it is confidently expected
that their report will be ready for presentation within the limit
of time fixed by the terms of their appointment. The commission:
has had for their guidance the report prepared by George B. Post„
ex-iVIayor Cooper, Cornelius O'Reilly, Stevenson Constable, theib
Superintendent of Buildings in New York City; Samuel McMil¬
lan, Wm. J. Fryer, editor of "The Laws Relating to Buildings in.
New York City," and Wtesley C. Bush, then Commissioner of
Buildings for Brooklyn, a committee appointed from the Com¬
mittee on Revision of the Building Laws, of which Mr. Fryer waa
also the Secretary. This report was based on the recommenda¬
tions of sub-committees of the Committee on Revision, the mem¬
bers of which were specially selected for their intimate knowledge,
of the subjects to be particularly considered. The report, there¬
fore, contained specialized opinions upon every part of the build¬
ing laws based upon the practical experience of the day, which.-
has undergone very little modification since. It was originally-
intended that these opinions should be put into the shape o£ a-
new building law and submitted to the Legislature. Meantime-,
the Charter Commission was appointed and the Legislature,
practically deciding that the matter was one for that commis¬
sion's consideration, refused to make any radical change in the;
building laws. The report of the sub-committee of seven was-
placed at the disposal of the Charter Commission, but that body
in turn decided that the building laws involved practical detail/
rather than principles of municipal government, with which they-
were most concerned, and relegated the whole matter to the Mu¬
nicipal Assembly by empowering them to appoint a commission-
to draft a building code. The view taken in these columns at the
time the commission was appointed and its probable work was
being discussed,thatas the Tenement House Law was embodied in
the charter and thereby made an act of the Legislature, the com¬
mission had no power to change it, has since been supported by
the opinion of the corporation counsel and accepted by the com¬
mission.
ONE important problem, for which the report of the com¬
mittee of seven does not provide a solution, has now come
up for disposition. This is the extent to which the fire limits re¬
quire to be enlarged under present circumstances and those of
a future of some years at least. Without wasting time to show-
what was previously proposed, it is important to state the propo¬
sitions now offered to the Commission on New Euilding Code
and which they have to consider. It is well to state, however,
that the charter makes other provision for the establishment of
flre lines than may be included in the powers of the commission.
In Chapter II„ the Legislative Department.section 49, subdivision .
31, the Municipal Assembly is empowered "to enlarge or extend-
from time to time the limits of the fire districts of the city, and.
to establish additional fire districts, and from time to time ex¬
tend the same." It has been suggested by Mr. Fryer that the fire-
lines should be made the subject of a separate ordinance, because
if once placed in the building code they can only be changed at
the request of the Board of Buildings, while if put into a sepai-ate
ordinance they can be changed at the request of the Fire Depart-
menit. However that may be, the Commission on New Building
Code is now considering the matter. The proposed limits for
Brooklyn, by including the northern half of the 29th Ward (Flat¬
bush), have aroused much local opposition. The Brooklyn,
members of the commission will give a.hearing on the matter
this evening in the ofiice of the Flatbush Water Company, at
Lenox road and Flatbush avenue, and Borough President Grout
has asked that the commission as a whole give- a hear-