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Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 1, no. 12: June 6, 1868

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AND BUILDERS' GUIDE. VoL.L] NEW YORK, SATURDAY, JUNE 6, 1868. [No. 12. Published Weekly by \ C. W. SWEET & CO., ;,,, Roo.Ai B, World Building, No. 37 Pabk Row. TERMS. Six months, payable in advance.................. 8 00 PRICE OF ADVERTISING. 1 square, ten lines, three months..................$10 00 1 square, single insertion.......................... 1 00 Special Notices, per line....'...................... 20 We have at length secured permanent quarters in Room B, Avhich is immediately adjoining, the offico^^^rccently occupied. Our address, therefore, her.eaft^^^^pRoom B, No. 37 Park Roav. -.- Jf^^^^^ The feature avc introduced last Aveek," All about the Streets," has been received Avith very great favor by pro¬ perty-holders, ond has proved, so attractive that Ave Avill shortly commence a similar record for Brooklyn. We are rapidly adding all tho large real estate holders of Noav York and Brooklyn to our subscription lists, and expect to hove 6,000 of this class of the " solid men " of the me¬ tropolis and its principal suburb before the 1st of August next. To such, this list of the property matters before the tAVO Common Councilsis indispensable. To keep track of them heretofore, it Avas necessary to wade through the oflicial proceedings, Avhich not ono person in tAventy of those interested has the time or patience to do. We are constantly in receipt of suggestions from sub¬ scribers, pointing out means Avhcreby the Recobd may be mado more useful and valuable than it is at present. Some of these avo have taken advantage of, but others, equally valuable, Ave have no room for at present. We now give far more matter than avo intended to do at first, and still more news presses upon us. By midsummer there Avil! not be the same pressure, and then avo can prepare for a splendid start in the fall. BETTER BUILDINGS WANTED. The recent experiments of the Messrs. Hoe, with a view of illustrating a new and economical mode of construction of buildings, is destined to mark a new era in the history of our city and country. The primary object has been, and still is, to a large extent, in the erection of a building, to put it up as cheaply and as quickly as pos¬ sible. So long as it possesses the outward show and beautiful interior finish of decora¬ tion, it makes no difference as to what the walls are composed of, or how thick they are. "Whether they will be durable or permanent does not seem to enter into the heads of many of our builders, contractors, and owners of property. Eush them up, finish them just as fast as possible, and sell them out. This subject was forced upon us recently, 'ivhile riding in one of the avenue cars lead¬ ing to the upper part of the island. We ob¬ served huge props placed against the north¬ erly side of a row of buildings now going up on the avenue a little above Yorkville. We suppose that, in the haste to get up the ex¬ terior walls, very little attention was given to the possible contingency of a storm, and in the midst of that which prevailed a week be¬ fore last (not very violent, either), this wall was shaken from its propriety about eight inches; hence the necessity for the artificial props. We have a Bureau for the Survey and Inspection of Buildings, and doubtless its %ork is well performed, certainly as well as the present laws upon the subject Avill admit. Bu^^ the fault is not in the laws, but in the false education of the people. They do not build their houses with a view to their perpetuity or permanency. If a house lasts the life-time of an individual, that is supposed to be long enough; but hoAV much more economical would it be in the end, if the object sought for was a laudable desire to build so that future generations might learn something of the wisdom of their ancestors from the char-, acter of their structures and public edifices. The old countries of Europe are far in ad¬ vance of us in this respect. The7'e are to be found buildings of every description, both public and private, that have stood defying the storms of centuries. The ruthless hand of ignorance, and the devastations of war, have laid Avaste and destroyed many valuable monuments of antiquity, on which the utmost exertions of human genius have been em¬ ployed, but, nevertheless, there still remain standing many, attesting the wisdom and skill of our ancestors, and which to-day are objects of interest, and even veneration, to the stu¬ dent as well as the tourist. The structures of modern times are mere shells, and the adornments mere tinsel, com¬ pared with those of the'Old World. From the ravages of fire, as well as the destructive effects of storms, they are the least guarded. Almost invariably, in the event of the oc¬ currence of a fire, whole roAvs of buildings are destroyed by the ravenous element, immense amounts of property sacrificed, misery in¬ describable endured, and sometimes death, even, ensuing, because of the flimsy, frail, and false protection which our new and modern-styled houses afford. In the cities of Paris and London no such contingencies can possibly happen, for the buildings are required to be so constructed that, even if a fire occur in one portion of a building, the inmates of another can rest se¬ cure in the certainty that it will not extend to them. The construction of these miserable apolo¬ gies for houses should, therefore, be discour¬ aged and discountenanced; and it should be the aim and the effort of those who build, to so erect their buildings that neither storms nor fires- can weaken or destroy. In truth, it is a hideous Avaste of capital to build houses which last only a few years. If we would enrich our children let us erect edifices which will outlast their lives as well as our own. HEALTHFUL HOMES. Mr. Robert Bonneu's very honest advertise¬ ment, that the home he wished to sell near Tremont, Avas situated in a fever and ague district, may not be very palatable to people liAong in that locality, but it ought to lead the large property holders in Westchester County to take immediate measures to drain the malari¬ ous localities under their controL It is es¬ timated that about one-third of Westchester Coimty is entirely free from malaria, that another third is occjsionally subject to aguish diseases, Avhile the remaining portion is as " bil- Uous" a region as any of the river bottoms of the West. People Avho vnah. to sell property do not wish this fact to be knoAvn, buj; it ia a fact nevertheless. The wise thing to do is to take immediate measures to drain the unhealthy portions of Westchester County which lie nearest New York. A million dollars spent in scAA-ers and drains would in five years' time add twenty millions to the value of property in Westchester County. Had the property OAvners of State Island tAventy years ago thoroughly drained it so as to insure it against the intermittent f ev Avhich prevail there to day, it Avould have be one contiauous city. It is a splendid regi naturally; but sensible people AAdU not res where their families sicken and die. The same remark is true of Westchester County. "When steam roads are constructed, the loAver portion of that locality Aivill practi¬ cally form a part of the metropolis; but before poptilation becomes denser, we hope that the Westchesterians Avill make the future homes of onr citizens healthful and habitable. The widening of BroadAvay is a subject that has called forth a great variety of opinions; of one thing we may be sure, that if done at all, it will cost less noAA'than five, ten, or fifteen years hence. As the grand entrance to the Boule¬ vard and the beautiful drives through the Cen¬ tral Park, it Avould seem that it Avere best to make the improvement noAV. The idea that it Avould be unsuited for business purposes, entertained by many, is not in point of fact correct. The Boulevards of Paris are lined Avith some of the most magnificent stores in the world. For Avholesale business purposes narrow streets may be best, but for the busi¬ ness that is carried ou in BroadAvay above