Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 46, no. 1172: August 30, 1890

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August 30. IbWi Record and Guide, 269 De/oteD to F^L Estwe . BuiLDiffc AppKiTECTai^E .HousnIoLD DEGQU^noH. Basw/Ess Mto Themes of GEftei^l Ij^TCt^Esj PRICE, PER YEAR IN ADVANCE, SIX DOLLARS. Published every Saturday. Telephone, . - • Cortlandt 1370. Communications should be addressed to C.W. SWEET, 191 Broadway, J. T. LINDSEY, Business Manager. Vol. XLVI. AUGUST 30, 1890. No. 1,172 THE flnancial atmosphere has cleared perceptibly during the week. The trouliles whiih have threateiied the market of late have not indeed been entirely removed. Tlic dissatisfaction existing among the railway employes has been suppressed and quieted without by any means being cured; and it is probable that money will be scarce throughcut the whole fall. On the other hand, the strength of the stock market, despite this undertone of uncertainity, is an encouraging symptom. Business in this country has now been fairly prosperous for more than a year. The profits which manufacturers and merchants bave been making must in time find their way to the stock market and increase the demand for good investment securities. Some such condition is necessary to any sustained advance in prices, as is also the absence of any immed'ately disturbing causes. Besides those mentioned above, the only depressing news which it is possible to anticipate would l)e a frost in the West, during the next two weeks, heavy enough seriously to damage the corn crop. This contingency, though seldom happening, must always be allowed for. If, however, the present fine weather continues, the labor troubles are not revived, and Secretary Windom continues to protect the money market, there seems to be nothing in the way of a substantial advance in prices. The large residue from the crops of last year, together with the fair yields of the present; the exhilarating effects of the governments cootinued purchases of silver and the circulation of the certificates in trade; the satisfactory condition of business, and the prosperity of the railroads will all help to sustain and advs^nce prices for the next two or three months, if not longer. * THE credit basis upon which business is to such a great extent conducted at the present time has obscured and led to an underrating, on the part of many, of the important function which money performs as a medium of exchange. The debates on the silver question, which have been carried on in Congress during the last session, show clearly that a considerable proportion of the people of this cotmtry hold to the opinion that the amount of money in circulation is of little consequence; that prices will vary as the quantity of circulating medium, and in the end it makes little diflference whether they are high or low. The readers of The Record and Guide are familiar with our views on this point. Tbe purpose here is merely to show, by an illustration drawn from the unpublished history of one of the early settl^uents in this country, the stimulating effect upon an impoverished community of an increase in specie circulation. IT is not generally known, at least it will not be found in published history, that the rapid growth of industry west of the AUe- ghanies dates from, and in a great measure was caused by, the " Whiskey Insurrection" of 1794. The condition of the early settlers living in Westem Pennsylvania at the time of this local outbreak against public authority was this: they were poor in a land of plenty. The movable wealth they possessed, in the first place, con¬ sisted of such articles as they could carry with them across the mountains on jack-horsos—the passes were too narrow for wagons. .The land was fertile, grain and provisions of all kinds easily raised in abundance; but there was no home market for provisions which every settler raised in common with his neighbors, and the moun¬ tains cut off the Eastern market to raw farm produce. Hence, the whiskey " stills," and the insurrection when the ceitral govern¬ ment sought to levy an excise tax on whiskey. But the point of interest to be noted here is that during this early period there was little money in circulation in Westem Pennsylvania. Exchanges were largely conducted by means of barter. Wheat never brought more than twelve and a-half cents in cash in the local market. Mills, manufactories— in short, all industries which required ready money before they could be erected or operated—could not exist in a community whe.e a Sfiecie dollar was an object of curiosiiy. Men in those days made the perilous jourcey—occupying from four to six months—to New Orleans in " keel boats" and returned on foot overland through regions infested with savage tribes (f Irdians for forty or fifty Siarieb dollars. A man named Finley,it is recorded, stipulated to serve as substitute in military service against the border Indians for one silver dol'ar. Such was the monetary state of affairs in Westem Pennsylvania tbe beginning ot* the year 1794. THEI^came the Whiskey Insurrection. The army sent out by the government to suppress the insurrectionists en ated a demand for provisions and horses, which, it is said, increased their money value over 200 per cent. Nearly a million dollars of government money was paid out in this part of the country. Money from this time on was plentiful; industries of various kinds sprang up; popu¬ lation was attracted thither and a cash home market was estab¬ lished. This illustration, if it sbows anything, shows that the amount of money in a commtmity has something to do with its industrial prosperity. It does not follow, however, because " too little " money in a commtmity works evil; that an unlimited supply is better than " enough." PEOPLE who have taken their ideas about the brick boycott from the daily papers are very misinformed as to the real condition of affairs. Following the seneational tenor of tliese stories one would be led to believe that the entire building trade in this city was already paralyzed, and that an enormous loss was now being entailed daily upon the community. Of course it would be foolish to underestimate the trouble; but it is palpable to anyone conver¬ sant with the facts that the boycott so far is of nothing like the magnitude, nor has it had anything like the effect which the daily papers make out. In the first place, building operations at present are going along very much an they have been for months past. Only in a very few cases has there been cessation of work, as everyone with eyes may see in a walk on the West Side, or through the district west of Broadway, between 14th street and Canal street, where a large part of the building in the city is progressing. Neither architects nor builders report so far any material inconvenience. During the past three months large stocks of brick bave been accumulated by dealera and others in anticipation of this trouble which has long been expected by the trade, and did not come like a clap of thunder. In addition, something like 1,500,000 brick have been arriving daily this week. Of course this is far short of the usual demand, and in no very great time the stock on hand will be consumed, and then, but not until then, will anything like the state of affairs described by the daily papers exist. It may come to this, of course, but it is good advice not to shake hands with the Devil until you meet him. To magnify a boycott such as the one iu pro¬ gress; to unsettle men's minds and alarm the community beyond the warrant of facts for the sake of a sensational story—well, that is the way these days of the daily press. WHAT the end of the boycott will be it is impossible to foretell. Both sides assume, even if they do not feel it, great assurance of success, and from the aspect of matters at present it would not be surprising if the trouble should prove to be a long one and hard to terminate. If this should be the case, of course the outlook is not a pleasant one for the great building industry of this section, which after all is of far more importance than either tbe manufacturers or their employes. The situation would then be like two drivers fixing themselves and their vehicles in the middle of a thorough¬ fare to tire one another out, while tiafSc is entirely suspended. We strongly advise arbitration in this matter, in spite of the protest that there is nothing to arbitrate about. To fight the question to the end until one side or the other is forced to siurender will not really advantage either party, compared with v hat would be gained if some sort of compromise could be effected. Arbitration opens t^"e door to such a compromise, and sometimes itis wonderful how easy the matter is. But nothing of the kind is possible while both sides refuse to have anything to do with one another. Cir- tainly both the manufacturers and their employes and allies will merit the severest censure if either leave anythinvi undone or lefuse to make any and all reasonable concessions for the benefit of the public weal. THE directors are said to have determined that there shall be no architectural competition for the Exhibition buildings in Chicago, but that architec!» tbat have shown ♦• decided ability " of a certain kind will be invited tu make plans. This is a very objec¬ tionable proceeding to the profession in Chicago, with the exception, of course, of the few who beheve theirs is the " decided ability'» which the directors have in mind. So long as the directors do n(jt limit their selection to^) closely, or from considerations that cannot be classed as artistic, it is our opinion they have acted wisely in foregoing the *• open-to-the world" sort of device of getting plans, for nothing is mere certain than this, tliat no architect of repute whose time and talent have any considerable worth will enter a scramble for a job without guarantee or payment of any kind. The contention, of course, is that there may be hidden away in soma