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Mareh 1», 18M Record and Guide. 429 DpÃTED TO REA.L ESTME . BUILDiKg ARCt
V^ l;J-rE!\ESI PRICE, PER TEAR IN ADTAIVCE, SIX DOLLARS. Piiblished every Saturday. TKLKPHONĩ: .... COBILANDT 1370. CommunicatioDs sbould be addressed to C. W. SWEET, 14 & i6 Vesey St J. 2, LINDSEY, Buainess Manager. "Entered at the Post-offlce at New York, N. Y., as second'Class matter." VOL. XLIX, MARCH 19, 1892. No. 1,253 THE stock market is liisturbed by news from abroad and by some events occurring at home. but most particularly from the fact that some people who burned tlieir tingers in tlie coal deal and upoQ unfounded expeotations have tiiem still cooling in their mouths. Id other words, there is some liquidating to be done, as a result of injudicious overbuying. The sign that liquidation is necessary is found in tlie duUness and stagnation that has main- tained for more than a week past in all things financial; the sign tliat it is taking place wiU be decline in prices. The promise for a new advance will come when that has taken place, and when the outlook for some of the staples, which directly or indirectly atĩect the prices of securities is better than it is now. Cotton threatens to reach its minimum, and the iron trade is fuU of complaints of the impossibility of getting good prices. While Southern and Northei-n irons are competing against eMch other complaints about returns come from all manufacturing sections, The imminence of further difcussion in Congresson the Bland Silver BiII is having its influence against security values, and the passage of that bill would be used by the bears to depress prices, no matter how firm President Harrison and his cabinet may be known to stand against any measure forcing thiscountry to experi- ment alone further in the bi-metallic line. Tlie publication of the Kichmond Terminal plan has also had its influence directly against the prices of the securities therein treated and indirectly against the balance of the market. The submission of this long- looked for plan and the action of the security- holders upon it, which must be seen soon, will help to clear the situation a good deal. Its acceptance. which, at the moment, [does not seem probable, would show a power and a confidence very generally beneficial, and its rejection will force upon the Richmond Terminal Company a reorganization by means of the courts, a course not altogether without advantage in, at any rate, putting a limit to the damage to the property. If all these things make tlie immediate outlook gloomy, it must not, however, be supposed that it is hopeless. Gloom is a phase o£ the market, as recuiTentas sunshine, and when we have the flrst, we know it must in good time be succeeded by the last. ENGLISH investors are to be congratulated that they are not large holders of continental securities. la 1875 it was esti- mated that the British holdings of the stocks of foreign govern- ments were nearly, if not quite, as large as those of home railways. Nowadays, in spite of the past South American boom, there is no such comparison to be drawn, for continental securities have passed wholesale out of British hands, and are held mainly on the con- tinent itself, where the prices, too, are chiefly controlled. Since the close of 1891 there has been a fresh fall in Greek, Spanish, Portuguese, Bulgarian and Italian stocks; and this fact must be taken as one of the causes of the depression ruling in Paris and in the otber continental markets. Just of late the English investor Iias been some- what comforted by a visible tendency towards recov- ery in colonial stocks. The trouble with the Australian colonies was that they required additional funds at an inconven- ient time ; and while they were alwayĸ pressing fresh issues on the [market. it was natural that some depreciation lihould be thown. There has likewise been an expected collapse in the gieat land speculation, which afflicted some of the leading Australian colonies, though there was little need to regard the position of the government creditors as materially aft'ected thereby. But now they bave in one way or another obtained the funds they most urgently required ; aud lately both New South Wales and Victoria have oíficially intiraated that they do not intend t» apply furtl>er to the Eoglish market for the present. There can be no doubt that the check admiuistered to unlimited colonial borrowinga will in the end prove a salutary one. IT ÍB very much to be hoped that some compromise can be reached in the matter of the new railroad bridge over the Harlem River at 4th avenue. The legislative authorization of the improvement should not be postponed for another year. The great and growing suburban business on the New Haveu & Harlem Rail- roads, not to speak of the general traffic, should notbe longer ham- pered by a continuance of the present exasperating delays at the draw-bridge. Fortunately some progress appears to have been made. The New York Central has agreed to give up its solid masonry approach, and substitute in its place an open viaduct which will not close any of the cross-town streets. The dispute now turns upon the question whether the city or the property - owners shall share the expense with the railroad company. The owners claim that the improve- ment is general in its nature and should not be assessed on the abutting property. This claim we believe to be substantially just. The residents of North New York will obtain the chief benefit from a higher bridge; and it is to be hoped that the city authorities will come to see that the most equitable method of apportioning the cost to the public is to huve itjpaid out of some general fund. . But under no oircumstances should some bill fail of passage. Wo suspect, however. that, at best, the matter is going to be very much bungled, and that a great deal of unnec- essary money will be spent and trouble incurred before all its bear- ings are flnally settled. The New York C^ntral is pre- paring to spend some millions ot dollars in building a bridge and approaches. Just one block to the wcst the plans of the Rapid Transit Commissioners prov ded for another structure,"higher and somewhat more elaborate and expensive. Both of these bridges are practically going to be devoted to the same purpose, and there is no present necessity for two bridges to accommodate the traflac. Yet scarcely a word has been said and not a single eífort has been made to unite the two projects. True, one of these projects is very far from realization, and the other of these plans is very near to it; but in the end one is just as necessary as the other, and both can be carried out most economically by means of a com- bination of interest and a sharing of expense. FWther- more it is evident that the 4th avenue bridge is not the only part of the New York Central's traflfic facilities in this city which need improvement. Before many years are out the Road will have to spend a great mauy millions on its terminus at 43d street; and if any increase of capacity is to be made at this point, it should be made with reference to the running of city rapid transit trains to the lower part of the city. The notiou of using Madison avenue for rapid transit purposes is on the face of it ridiculous. The only remaining East Side avenue adapted to the purpose is 4th avenue; the new road can be constructed thereon cbeaply, and with the greatest convenience to the East Side population. OO far as we know all this is admitted by every sensible person O whohasstudied theproblem. But if it is true, why in the world is not some efĩort made to bring about aunion of the two interests ? At present the management of the corporation and the Rapid Transit Commissioners are simply sitting and awaiting developments. Neither will take the preliminary steps necossary to. the beginning of negotiations. Yet there are reasons to believe that neither is immovably opposed to a conferenco. Ever since Commodore Vander- bilt proposed to extend the New York Central down town the Vander- bilts have been entirely willing to construct agood southern connec- tion. Thestorm of abuse, however. with which theCommodore's pro- position was received has naturally made his successors very circum- spect about making auy similar advances. Whenever Chauncey M. Depew is interviewed on the matter he refers to the treatment which the Commodore received in a way that shows how the outrageous abuse levelled against the founder of the family still raakles in Vanderbilt bodies. Unless all indications fail, however, a similar proposition would be received atpreseut in a sanerand moregentle- manly spirit; but under the circumstances the initiative ought to come from the Rapid Transit Commissioners. Their wbole plan is in danger of being wrecked, be- cause of the natural and justifiable opposition of the Madison avenue property-owners. No doubt commissionersjwould have long ago been appointed by the Supveme Coiu-t, and by this time the legal requirements very nearly satisfled, if the only impedi- ment which had to be met was the small share of aotive antagonism which property-owuers along tlie otber purtions of the route advanced. So as to have this aspect of the matter finally settled'we believe that the bill introduced into the Legislalure exempting Madison aveuue from all rapid transit plans should be paased. Theu the Rapid Trau^it Commissioners would have to build another East Side route, aud what could they do but enter in some negotiations with the New York Central. Of course they also dislike to take the initiative in opening such a oonference, for^they,would lay themselves open to the reproach of
