Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 69, no. 1779: April 19, 1902

Text version:

April It,, 1902. IM^C'OUI) AXD GLIDH 691 g / ----------------^ _. , DtVoTEi) TO R.1HL Estate.Sinior/o A^RfiHTrEcmiRE.Htruaoloii) DEt3(HiA3iDn. BUSIhJESS MfoTH?Ji.1=;r,QFCEfIZl^ IjflEEVaT. PRICE PER YEAR IN ADVANCE SIX DOLLARS Published every Saturday Communleatlona should be addreaHSd to C. W. SWEET, 14-16 Vesey Street, New YorK J. T. UNUSET, Businsaa ManBKer Telephona, Cortlandt 31S7 "Entered al the Post Office at Neu York, N. T., as second-class maUer." Vol. LXIX. APRIL 19, 1902. No. 1779 THERE is considerably better feeling in the Stoclv Market and public interest in stock speculation lias grown con¬ siderably, though the bull; of the operations continues to be professional. What threatened a serious menace to values, the Louisville and Nashville matter, has finally settled down into a benefit to tbe situation, because the control of the L. & N. prop¬ erty by interests friendly to Southern Railway iusures peace in another large and distinct area of railroad operations. If ever the true story of this operation is made public, it wiil most probably be found that the prime mover in it intended originally only a speculative turn on the long side of the stock and suddenly found himself in possession of a good thing, but one rather troublesome to keep. He would know that the friends of Southern Railway, as a matter of policy, must hold a considerable amount of Louisville, aud it w-as easy to place with them on satisfactory terms a further amount that would give them control. While control of the two properties is now in tbe same bands, there is no prospect of a merger so long as the Northern Securities suit is undecided, and there are reasons for believing that it would be even more difficult to consolidate competing roads in the South than elsewhere. A case in point is Georgia Central which though actually owned by Southern Railway is technically owned by a trust company, because of the laws of Georgia which forbid the control or operation of one competing road by another. Still the final disposition of this exciting matter is one that makes for harmony in the Southeast, and practically leaves the Southwest as the only section of the country where the existing conditions are not insured by something more practically effective than a men harmonious understanding, which has hitherto proved to oe unreliable in times of poor busiuess. A decision confirming the legality of the security holding company would doubtless be fol¬ lowed by a general movement in the direction of consolidation through similar agencies. The effort of such a movement would, undoubtedly, be to put railroad investments on an enduring stable basis. While Wall Street bas been excited by recent events, the other .centers of business and speculation have con¬ tinued on an even course of activity and prosperity, and this BO sustains values in the Stock Market that securities are hard to buy and dangerous to sell when delivery of the goods cannot be arranged for in advance. , T X yHEN the British Government determined not to wait VV for the determination of the Boer conference, but to issue their new loan this week they cast a doubt upon the pros¬ pect for early peace in South Africa, but they distinctly proved their credit with the capital of two continents. The new loan makes $460,000,000 borrowed in one year. It is a great success both in New York and London, in spite of the fact that the subscribers to the issue of last April have had but small op¬ portunity for making a dollar by resales. The price of that Issue was 94^, and since its subscription quotations have ranged more, and for a much longer period in the aggregate below than above that figure. The issue at 93i^ ought to give better results, because money for such investments is much more plentiful than it was a year ago, and because it is doubtful if another issue will be needed for a long time to come and the market therefore knows what it has to digest. The rejected proposal of Holland being followed by a conference of Boer leaders on their own initiative indicates the lay of the situation In South Africa, but the movements of South African securities In the markets do not indicate that the undercurrents of in¬ formation are favorable to an immediate suspension of oper¬ ations in the field. The official announcement of this fact Is Bure to be preceeded by an upward movement in Rand shares, which have on the whole been dull despite the nature of the dispatches. Taking them as the barometer of events, it may be said that the situation is a hopeful one only. European busi¬ ness is improving somewhat and more interest is taken in American securities, though this interest is said to be confined almost wholly to speculators. Owing to the prospective renewal of electric railroad construction. Copper comes in for a good deal of attention and some remarks are made on Amalgamated which serve to explain this week's and prior reductions in dividends. These remarks are from "The Economist," London and are: "Within the past few weeks the Amalgamated Company has had to fulfil its sale contracts, and as the deliveries both in the States and in Europe have increased to a substantial extent, it has found great difficulty in getting standard brands, and has, in fact, not only had to witness a decline to about 12c. in Lake and electrolytic copper, but has lately had to exchange elec¬ trolytic for standard at a premium of about 5s. per ton on the latter, whereas the usual margin has been from £5 to £6 per ton. . . . If au utter collapse is to be averted it will only be by the admission of the Heinz group of producers upon, to them, very much more satisfactory conditions than they would have been required to accept a few mouths ago." The Rectification of the Street System of Manhattan. ■^"■HE cities of New York and Paris are strongly contrasted ■^ in many ways, but in no respect are they more com¬ pletely contrasted than in the comparative activity and efficiency of the interests which make for public improvements on the one hand and private improvements on the other. In Paris every New Yorker must immediately notice how much less private building there is underway. Not only is this true in the newer sections of the city, but it is even more true of the older parts that are already built up. Not a tithe of the reconstruction which is constantly taking place in New York is to be noticed on the Paris streets, and were it not for the new streets through which the municipality is constantly opening up through old blocks, there would be almost none at all. On the other hand public improvements of ali kind are consummated with a celerity and an economy of which New York cannot offer no paralleL New York because of its expanding population, and its general unfinished condition, actually needs these public improvements even more than Paris does, but instead of anticipating the needs of its population in that respect, or even keeping pace rwith them, the city of New York lags far behind the most palyable and urgent necessities of its growing population. The lively and continuous activity of reconstruction which are car¬ ried on by private interests are not paralleled by any corre¬ sponding and supplementary plans of reconstruction by the public authorities, so as to adapt the street system to ever chang¬ ing and augmenting demands of the city trafflc. During the period of the second Empire, Paris underwent a drastic process of what has since been called Hausmannization. It consisted of running wide streets and boulevards through the crowded and congested parts of the old city, and providing foi a free circulation of traffic and population. The consequence is that the enormous traffic on the Paris streets moves about with a freedom which is unknown in New York and London. The congestion of 'busses and cabs which makes a trip to the "City" in London, frequently so slow and irritating a busi¬ ness, the congestion of carriages, trucks and cars which makes such crossways as the corner of Sth ave. and 42d st. in New York, an almost intolerable impediment to business and traffic is unknown in Paris, and yet that city is not saUsfied. It has recently decided to open an important new street running from Rue de Rennes to the Seine, coming out near the Pont Neuf. This street, although needed is not needed anything like as badly as many similar improvements are In New York. Yet here plans for rectification, in details, such as the prolongation of Madison ave. to Broadway, or that of cutting a broad avenue south of 14th St. and west of Broadway, are talked of but left untouched for years. And when an attempt is made tO' consummate an important street improvement, it is so badly managed that it becomes a burdensome expense, botb to the city and property owners. It is hard to make people realize into what an intolerable' condition of things New York is drifting. Her street system,, which was execrab!;>- planned in the beginning, is distined tc be put to a strain more severe than that of any other city inr the world. Buildings from ten to twenty stories in height are being erected along the whole central ridge of Manhattan Isl¬ and, and upon streets that inadequately provided for the trafflc needs of a much less dense arrangement of population and business. These buildings tend both to increase the trafflc and still more to increase the expense of providing additional