Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

The Record and guide: [v. 35, no. 880]: January 24, 1885

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-v.04i January 'a-i^ The Record and Guide. ?3 -HE RECORD AND GUIDE, Published every Saturday. 1©1 Broad-way, 3Sr. "^. TERMS: OIVE YEAR, in advance, SIX DOLLARS. Communicatioiis should be addi'essed to C. W. SWEET, 191 Broadway. J. T. LINDSEY, Busmess Manager. JANUARY 24, 1885. Public Measures and the Real Estate Exchange. The new Real Estate E.Kchaiige has a great future before it, if it continues iii the course in which it has begun. The aim of those who originated the Exchange was much higher than to establish a mere salesroom for trading in real estate. The other exchanges have nothing to say about our government or laws, probably for the reason tliat the price of stocks, grain, cotton, petroleum, metals, coflFee and the like are not aflfected by bad State or municipal enact¬ ments. It is otherwise with real estate. That greatest of interests is directly injured by laws now on the statute book and is in danger of others which may be passed by the State or local legislatures. Hence the moment the recognized representatives of the real estate interests got togetlier tliey were confronted by legal impedi¬ ments in the transaction of their busiuess, and were naturally tempted to .see if something could not be done in the interest of tax¬ payers. One of the first acts of the directors of tlie new Exchange was to appoint a committee of fifty ou legislation whose functions it would be to watch everything done at Albany and in the City Hail affecting the interests of owners of realty. Tliis committee did some excellent work last year and it promises to be still more efficient this year. Its meetings are largely attended and a new force in local politics has been set in motion which it is to be hoped will take the place of the various reform organizations which in times past have tried to accomplish so mucli, but all of which were finally captured by the politicians. As soon as the Exchange is recognized as a power in politics an attempt will of course be made to run it in the interest of the tax eaters; but as the leading mem¬ bers of the Exchange are hard headed men of business, representing great realty interests, and are. moreover, uot ambitious of office for themselves or their friends, it is not likely that tliis institution will become a jjrey to the politicians. The Exchange has seen fit to memorialize Congress for ample appropriations to put this city in a state of defence. Should a foreign Heet bombard or capture New York, or should a ransom be exacted to ward off an attack, it is the holders of realty who would be the chief sufferers. It seems entirely proper therefore that an institution representing the real estate of New York and its neigh¬ borhood should call the attention of the Federal Government to this vital matter. The Real Estate Exchange Iia.s also Invited the Stock, Cotton, Produce and other exchanges to second its efforts and those of tlie Chamber of Commerce in liaving New York put in a state of defence. In view of the facts the apathy of our own people as well as Congress is simply amazing. Every recognized military and naval authority iu the country has pointed out how defenceless are our sea coast cities, especially New York. It would take us three years if we commence at once to make New York reasonably safe against the attack of any fifth rate naval power. Senator Hoar, of Massachusetts, .said in the Senate recently : Our condition is well known to foreign nations. The absolutely defence¬ less condition of all our coast is well kno>vn abroad. The late Minister of Foreign Affairs iu France said to one of our own statesmen not loug since: " How about your defences ? In the Intelligence Department ot our War Office," said he, " we have a drawing of ev^ery military work of consequence on the whole American coa.st line, with comments ou their strength. There is not a first-class fortification among them all. Do you know how long it takes to buUd a first-class modern gun ?" said this French Minister. The American replied that he did not. Lacoursaid: " It takes a whole year. Yom- cities would be shelled and sacked and laid uuder tribute while you were creating a navy; aud how could you rebuild your fortifications with 1,000-poimd shells falling about the ears of your working men ? Be sure"—now mai-k this—"Be sure that the defeuceless condition of yom- country is thoroughly weU^ known and commented upon by every power in Eurojie, that would gladly see you humbled, for, as I said, your prosperity is a dangerous menace to all the nations of the Old World except France." It is idle to say that if we give no offence there is no danger of war. No nation ever escaped international conflicts, and there is no instance in history of rich unprotected communities that were not spoliated by unscrupulous rivals who had the advantage of being prepared for war. If the other exchanges will second the efforts of the Real Estate Exchange and Chamber of Commerce it may be possible to secure liberal appropriations from the sitting Congress, and this united action of our great business organizations may be usefully employed hereafter for other public objects. British and American Legislation Contrasted. Mr. Simon Sterne delivered a very interesting address before the legislative committee of the Real Estate Exchange recently, which deserved to be very widely publislied in the press, but, the latter made no mention of it. Our newspapers do not seem to care for re¬ porting any matter of real public moment. James R. Keene's rough and tumble with a conductor, the bout between Sullivan and Ryan, or a discussion about the office eat of our "esteemed contemporary", seems to consume the energies of our journals; hence they can find no place for reporting discourses which are full of valuable in¬ formation and weighty suggestions. Mr. Sterne's address was on the superior methods of British as compared with American legislation. In our Congress and Legis¬ latures immense numbers of bills are offered, some with public and others with private objects in view; but in the struggle for life it is the enactments which have most backing, and these are often of a malign character, which are finally passed. Governor Hill is au¬ thority for the statement that over fifty of the biUs passed by the last Legislature were so crudely drawn and so inconsistent with previous legislation that they all should have been vetoed, although many of them Iiad worthy objects in view. So thoroughly bad is our legislation that the annual meeting of the State Assembly and Sen¬ ate is regarded with alarm and their final adjournment is always hailed with pleasure. In the British Parliament matters are managed very much better. The system of ministerial responsibility jiuts all the bills having a public character in the hands of the existing Cabinet. This cuts off the consideration of swarms of projects which in this country con¬ sume the time of the committees and the legislatures. Then as regards private bills, such as those for railroads, canals, bridges, public improvements, the organization of industrial enterprises and the like, they are put through a severe ordeal before they are con¬ sidered at all. Notice of these bills must be filed sixty days before Parliament meets, and they must be ptissed upon by what is really a Parliamentary Court before they can he placed upon the docket of the House of Commons. Every private bill has to stand upon its own merits and the authorities must be satisfied that it injures no vested interest and is otherwise unobjectionable before it is submitted to Parliament. Experts examine these private bills and parliamentai y lawyers are employed to discuss them pro and con. These parlia¬ mentary lawyers by the way, are respectable practitioners and must not be confounded witii our lobby, though they do some of tlie same work ; but the final result is that nine-tenths of the proposed bills are killed and only the fittest survive. These last are resubmitted to committees of the House itself but not until after experienced experts have got them into proper shape. The work done by the ministry in accepting or rejecting public measures and by the pre¬ liminary parliamentary court in selecting unobjectionable private bills reduces the work of Parliament to a minimum ; and hence legis¬ lation in England is well considered and wise, while in this country our laws are a hap-hazard jumble because Congress and the Legis¬ latures undertake to do too much and employs wrong methods in dealing with matters brought before them. There is one peculiarity wliich distinguishes American legisla¬ tors from British members of parliament which Mr. Sterne did not touch upon. The British parliament has been called the "first club in England." It represents the great interests of the British Em¬ pire. The landlord class is the most powerful and mucli of the evil legislation of the empire is due to the influence of the great landlords especially in the House of Lords. The manufacturers are very largely represented iii membership; also the merchants and bankers. A very influential section of English legislators are men of wealtli, edufuition and oratorical ability who make imperial pol¬ itics a profession. They are not politicans in the questionable sense witli which we regard that class in this country, but public spirited gentlemen who liave a laudable ambition to shine in the affairs of state. Of lawy^ers projjer there are verj few in the Commons. They find their place in the parliamentary court and represent the in¬ terests of private bill promoters in what we w