Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

The Record and guide: v. 40, no. 1009: July 16, 1887

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July IC, 1887 The Record and Guid^. 949 THE RECORD AND GUIDE, Published every Saturday. 191 Broadway, N". Y- Oar Telepbone Call Is - « * • JOHN 370. TERMS: ONE TEAR, in advance, SII DOLLARS. Communications should be addressed to C. W, SWEET, 191 Broadway. J. T. LINDSEY, Business Manager, Vol. XL. JULY 16, 1887. No. 1,009 All regxdar subscribers to The Record and Guide should receive the Index published this day. TJie Index gives the images on ivhich all Conveyances and New Buildings published for the past six months for Netv York and Kings Counties appear. This IndeXt which we publish twice a year, is a great saving of time for all who keep files of The Record and Guide. Everyone engaged in the real estate business should keep suchfiles, ivhich grow more valuable as years pass by. So far the summer of 1887 has been a hot one. This has not, however, apparently injured the crops except in special localities, for there have been seasonable rains at intervals. According to the doctrine of probabilities the rest of the summer ought to be temperate. The heat seems to affect our leading exchanges. Last Tuesday on the Stock Exchange less than 86,000 shares were bought and sold, a business often exceeded in one hour when spec¬ ulation is lively. Still this falling off in the business of the Stock Exchange is due to other causes besides the weather. The Consolidated Exchange does about as large a business as its elder rival in the best class of securities. It is a curious fact that the fancies and illegitimate stocks are much more of a feature on the old than on the new ex¬ change. The brokers in the Consolidated institution cannot very well trade in Wheeling & Buffalo, Denver & Fort "Worth, and the other "cats" which have been so extensively dealt ia on the regular exchange, to the great loss of all who dabbled with them. It is no wonder that the shares of the old board are declining in value and that tliose of the new board are appreciating. The latter, by the way, went through the recent semi-panic without any failures, which shows that the institution is on a sound basis. The regular Stock Exchange must reduce its commissions and adopt a clearing-house system or else see its rival take the lead in stock transactions. '•Sir Oracle" discourses on politics this week, and ventures to predict that President Cleveland will be the nominee of the Demo¬ cratic party, and that James G, Blaine can have the Republican nomination if he wants it. Since the conversation was put in type a canvass of some 21,000 Republican authorities has been made public, from which it seems that the great bulk of those who answered the question favored Mr. Blaine. John Sherman has also many admirers, while Mr. Robert Lincoln figures as third in the list. "Sir Oracle" has of ten stated in these columns that should Mr. Blaine not be nominated, Mr. Lincoln would very likely come to the front as the standard bearer of the Republicans. He has not made his mark either as a statesman or as an orator, but he has given the impression of being a safe, solid kind of man, and a fair executive ofl&cer. Then, that he is the son of his father would be no small racommeadation to the American people, But whoever is nominated by either party, why should we not have one really decent canvass ? When there are no great princi¬ ples dividing parties, political contests are apt to be waged on low and personal grounds. Our newspapers become unreadable for respectable people. It may be that the two leading parties will divide on some vital issue not now perceptible. But the danger is the rehashing of tbe old personal scandals against Cleveland and Blaine, should they again be the nominees. The Labor party and the Prohibitionists may do something to raise the character of the political debate, for wliile the issues they press upon the coun¬ try are objectionable they are at least fundamental and provocative of a discussion that may be worth taking part ia# The nationali¬ zation of land may be an impracticable proposition, but it is a worthier subject for consideration than the Mulligan letters or Mr, Cleveland's private affairs before he had any public career. The history of the abortive Baltimore & Ohio deal conveys a lesson it would be well for fathers who control important interests to keep in mind. Mr, Robert Garret inherited the control of one of the richest and greatest railroad systems in the country. Instead of following the wise and conservative lines of his father's policy, he undertook to manage the great trust in a way of his own. He got up a local express company, a sleeping car company, and a tele¬ graph company to fight existing organizations. He also determined to reach New York by way of Philadelphia. From all accounts he has failed in every object he undertook, after spending all the money the bankers were willing to lend him. Having come to the end of his tether, he cast about for a person or syndicate to take the load off of his shoulders. Instead of going to the Drexels or any of a dozen great banking firms that might be named, who would gladly have undertaken the task of getting so splendid a property out of its difficulties, he first dickered with Alfred Sully, of Richmond Terminal fame, and finally made a bargain with a cheeky young speculator who had very little money and no reputation at all. The whole history of Wall street has been changed by this signal lack of business ability on the part of Mr. Garret. Had a really great banking firm obtained control of the Baltimore & Ohio system during April or May last we should have had a buoyant stock mar¬ ket all this summer. But it is safe to say that literally hundreds of millions have been lost in the street and the country because a round man was in a square hole as the controlling authority of a s:reat railroad system. There is probably more than one man in high position in financial circles who, if he filled his proper vocation, would be at work on the shoemaker's bench. Matters in Europe have an ominous appearance, though there does not seem to be any danger of immediate war, for if there was the price of British Consols would be much lower than they are. It looks as if some convulsion must take place in Russia, and the feeling between France and Germany is certainly not improving. The recent elections in England show that while the voters may not be willing to extend Home Rule to Ireland they do not favor drastic coercion bills. There have been eighty of these enactments tested during the present century, and experience has shown that they are not the remedy required to improve the situation of affairs in Ireland. A land bill giving the Irish people a stake in the soil would be more to the purpose, and until such an enactment is passed it is idle to hope that the Irish people will be law abiding. Z The Board of Health, it seems, is about to embark on a new cam¬ paign against contagious diseases. The force of assistants has been reorganized and a number of active young physicians been appointed to carry out the sanitary work of the department. It has been the rule to isolate small-pox patients. Hereafter the Health Depart¬ ment will also remove persons suffering from diphtheria, scarlet fever, and even measles. These disorders are very destructive of life, and when they occur in crowded tenements they create centres of infection from which these often fatal diseases are car¬ ried into the families of those who are surrounded usually by good sanitary conditions. New York ought to be one of the healthiest cities on earth. Its means of purification are superior to those of any of the large capitals of the world, but up to this time its death rate has been very large. Indeed, it has ranked as one of the most unsanitary cities of the modern world. Health Commissioner Baylis has a chance to win great renown by lowering the death rate of the metropolis. A Brooklyn paper suggests that taxpayers may be interested in one of the possible results of the quarrel between the ex-priest, McGlynn, and the local Roman Catholic authorities. McGlynn stated in his Academy of Music address that he approved of Governor Cleveland's veto of the appropriation for the Roman Catholic Protectory. If Mc¬ Glynn and his friends should make a vigorous fight against the State and city appropriations for the Roman Catholic charitable organiza¬ tions, it might be the means of reducing the large amounts which have heretofore been given to them. Hitherto the class of people whom McGlynn and George represented have not objected to heavy appropriations for Roman Catholic institutions, as the money was spent among a poor class who otherwise would have to be supported by their relatives and friends. But, after all, the reason assigned for favoring these institutions is that they can spend the money more advantageously than can the city in taking care of the frienclless and orphans liable to become a charge on our public charities. Mayor Hewitt is trying to solve the problem of how to render our down-town stiects more passable during business hours. On this point we have made frequent suggestions, which we will here re¬ peat for the benefit of the Mayor. In the first place, let him recom¬ mend to the Aldermen the passage of an ordinance preventing huge trucks, carrying safes, large blocks of stone, long iron or wooden poles and the like, from occupying the streets below Chambers street, between the hours of 10 A. M, and 6 P. M, It is these huge un- wieldly wagons that create half the trouble in the crowded business thoroughfares of the city. They could do their work far better early