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296 RECORD AND GUIDE August 15, 1914 m I BUILDING MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES I PLAN FILINGS AND CONSTRUCTION WORK SHOW NO EFFECT FROM THE WAR—VALUES COMPARABLE WITH LAST WEEK'S. Prices are Stationary with Inquiry Slightly More Keen—Brick Steady. iCTIIllllWlil[liniilllllllllilllilllllllllMIW"l""illll'M"i"ll'""""""^ miiiiHiiiwiiiiiiiiminiiiiiiiiifttiiiiiiii-^ SO far as it has been possible to dis¬ cover neither building construction nor the building material market has been affected by the European disturb¬ ance. If anything there has been a freer buying movement for basic mate¬ rials on the part of dealers and dis¬ tributors who supply speculative build¬ ers. Structural steel is the only com- moditv that has been advanced in price, but the upward change has been nom¬ inal and is still far from the 1.46 level that prevailed for tidewater shapes at this time last year. Linseed oil is still at the 60-cent level, ruling during the week before the European nations be¬ came embroiled and while flaxseed is stiffening at Duluth. it is due to short¬ age of supply and not in any degree be¬ cause of war abroad. As for building construction through¬ out the country Dodge Reports^ show absolutely no abandonment of impor¬ tant building operations as a result of the war. The volume of new building operations being projected is normal for August east of the Mississippi and slightly above normal for the iniddle part of the country. There also has been no change in the situation on the Pacific coast. In New York and vicin¬ ity there are enough buildings under pro¬ jection, according to the same authority, to make for a perfectly normal autumn in building. Financially the building situation is far less gloomy than are the general stock, bond, textile and general imports markets. Building money for new pro¬ jects is hard to get, but there were in¬ stances reported this week of engage¬ ments made for factory extension in the clothing, foodstuffs and cold storage departments. Building financing is not dependent so much at present on the movement for speculative operations as it is for specialty construction in com¬ modity fields where the war abroad is likely to have a quick, direct and posi¬ tively favorable effect just as soon as shipping on the high seas has been made secure enough to permit some flexibility in insurance rates. The first shocks of the war are pass¬ ing. Finance has been reassured by the treasury department that all its emer¬ gency resources are still far from being exhausted. The crops are being moved and there is being worked out a way to move securities through the stock ex¬ change and clearing house committees that will sooner or later pave the way for a reopening of the Stock Exchange. Domestic trade is steady in practically all branches, except in those instances where certain food staples are being manipulated apparently for the purpose of storing up larger supplies of food so that they can be shipped to the belliger¬ ent armies of Europe at premiums. New York and vicinitv is bound to become the world's storehouse for all sorts of supplies, according to an au¬ thority in the realty market this week, vet aside from a few terminals this city finds itself practically poverty stricken in its available warehouses. This means that if the war is protracted there will be a big building movement in ware¬ houses, stock rooms and office accom¬ modations to handle this mountainous supply of stores. Such a movement, if it develops, will quickly decide the des¬ tiny of neighborhoods in dock sections and tracts at various points along the harbor front as far as definite classifica¬ tion of its occupancy is concerned, thus making values more staple. The result should be a stimulation of business building expansion, a type of financing that money lenders look upon with most favor in times like these. Jobbing in¬ terests say that dealers are comins; into the market more freely for supplies, but that while prices are not being advanced credits are not so liberal as they were several weeks ago. Building plans filed this week show a o^ain in value over those of last week. Details by boroughs follow: W-^ek ending /-----August 7—^ ,.—August 13—>, No. Value. No. Value. Manhattan ... 12 .$2,001,750 11 ,f;027 OOO Bronx ........ Ifi 4f)fi,325 0 .3.37225 Brooklyn ..... fi4 5.3P.4S5 fi4 1 459'.250 Queens ...... 10f> 317.725 77 200 fiRS Richmond .... 22 43,365 13 20,8.30 Total ...... 214 .$3,370,650 174 .$3,004,993 LUBE. PLASTKR. GYPSUM. Current Movement of Materials Normal, Inquiry W'itliout Change. IT was still too early to gauge the effect of the European war upon the lime, plaster and gypsum interests this week, but there was no indication reported where there had been any countermanding of orders or postponement of deliveries. Here and there are some build¬ ers, the plaster people say, who are inclined to put off new operations until the autumn gets fairly well under way. but for the most part, builders, who have their operations financed, are going ahead as though nothing unusual oc¬ curred. "That statement of Walter Stabler's appear¬ ing in the Record and Guide last week," said a prominent plaster man this week, "did much to make contractors and others realize that there is a pretty sourceful ITncle Samuel who stands be¬ hind his people in time of stress and the emergency methods so far put into operation are only a beginning of what can be done to stem the tide of oanlc. "I believe now that tbe worst that we fear will not be felt, that building construction will proceed, because we have already taken up a large amount of the slack in our local supply of available moaern buildings and the time is ripe for tearing out some of that large unsala¬ ble space in tbe part of the town between Chambers street and 23d and improving it. We certainly have got to be ready for pros¬ perity when it comes and I believe it will be¬ gin to come just as soon as England makes the seas, safe for shipping." departments there are very slim prospects at present, at least, of anything occurring to mar fhe existing schedules. Even though there should be a temporary shrinkage in building construction, there is a tremendous demand for these concrete ineredients to keep the mills and quarries and mines operating practically un to current capacitv for a very long time. There has been no change in prices and de¬ mand has not flu-^tuated either up or down since the first of the month. SAND, GRAVEL AND STONE. Sub^vay and Rulldinc: Work Already FInnneed Keeps Market Even. CAND, gravel and crushed stone interests ^ are standing pat both on prices and sup¬ ply. There has been no change in produc¬ tion and. according to leaders in these two COAL. Improvement In Fall Demand Expected to Keep rolllerw Busy. A DVICES from Philadelphia this week seemed '^ to indicate that the sharp falling off In demand for coal In the eastern market as a result of the tying up nf shippine. mlerht re- ouire the closing of collieries temporarily in order that the supplv may not exceed the de¬ mand to the extent that sacrifice prices will be necessary. Owing to the cutting of profits from one cause or another in recent years, the opprators feel that they would rather close the colleries. if necessary, in order to keep prices where thev are. They say that to supply coal at any figure lower than those now ruling under wholesale contracts would be practically ruin¬ ous. -Au^'ust, however, always is a dull coal month. The fact that September generally brings about ereat activitv In the coal department is looked unon as being a possible way out of the diffi- nultv, If the users of coal in New York can p-et into the market for supplies a little earlier than usual and thus distribute some of the Sep¬ tember business through August, the mine in¬ terests say they may not have to close the '"ollerles. Tidewater stocks are said to be light here and there is said to be considerable coal stored in the interior. Some managers of build¬ ings are arranging for means to store coal here In case of contingencies arising later on. Bitu¬ minous coal is in fair demand. There has been no change fn prices. GLASS. Demand for Single Lif^lit—Di»countH Unchanged. \W INDOW glass in this market is holding ^ steadily. There is a little more liberal stocking on the part of jobbers which Is giving the mill men greater activity, but the supply already was large and in only a few cases has the mill capacity been changed. Dealers, how¬ ever, are not liberal buyers. Apparently they are waiting to see what effect the foreign war will have upon building construction in this country. What orders are coming in are being filled from stock or else the dealer is buying from hand to mouth. Jobbers anticipate higher lists and lower discounts if the mills are obliged to close. At present there is no change in discounts or prices. POHTLVXD CEMENT. fMitput Cut 10 I'er Cent, in First Half of Year. CTATISTICS covering the first half of 1914 ■^ in the Portland cement industry discloses the fact that there was a slump of 10 per cent. In mill output during that period compared with the first half of 1013. but that shipments for the same period fell only 2 per cent, below tbe first and second quarters of last year. The reduction in output, therefore, was reflected in a decrease of surplus in producers' hands, indi¬ cating that as soon as there is any strengthen¬ ing worthy of the name in demand, prices will not only regain their normal status of 90 cents mills, but may even go beyond that level. On June 30 the total output for the first six months had reached 35.000.000 barrels as against .30.ono,tMX> barrels at even date last year. The total output in 1013 was 92.097.131 barrels. Stocks on hand at mills on June 30 totaled 10,- (k:h),oii() barrels as against 11.220.328 at the same time last year. This represents a decrease for the first half of 1014 of about 11 per cent. The chief interest these figures have for deal¬ ers in the metropolitan district is the Intimation they give that the cement industry has at last emerged from its fearful state of being over¬ produced and that the demoralization that has featured this department for the last six years is happily being obliterated. New York mills during the first half of the year made a relatively better showing than did those in the Lehigh district. COMMOX BRICK. Registered Unloadin;:; Less Than Last Week's Fisiures—Prices Weaker. T TXLOADING of common brick this week was ^ in excess of that of last week. Prices, however, were inclined to be weaker. Four plants up the river, notably the Aldrich, Den- nings Point, Bruso and one at the Kingston district, have closed for the season. On Sunday the Catherine F., a brick barge, owned by the Fowler interests at Haverstraw was in collision off the Battery and lost 400,000 brick, consigned to John P. Kane Company, in charge of a tow of the Cornell Steam Towing Company. Official transactions for Hudson River brick covering the week ending Thursday. Aug. 13, in the wholesale market, with comparison for the corresponding period last year, and a com¬ parative statement of Hudson brick unloaded from barges for consumption here, follow : 1914. Left over, August 7—^18. Arrived. Sold. Friday. Aug. 7 ................. .t 6 Saturday. Aug. 8 ............... 5 6 Monday, Aug. 10 ...............21 12 Tuesday. Aug. 11 ............... 1 5 Wednesday. Aug. 12 ............ 7 7 Thursday, Aug. 13 ..............9 9 Total ....................... 48 45 Note.—1 Barge sunk. Loss. 400,000 brick. Reported en route, Friday, Aug. 14—8. Condition of market, weak. Prices : Hud¬ son, $5.25 and .$5.75 ; Raritans, $5.50 to $5.75 (wholesale dock, N. Y.) ; (for dealers' prices add profit and cartage) ; Newark. .$6.75 to .$7.25 (yard). Nominal. Left over Friday a. m., Aug. 14. 21. HUDSON RIVER BRICK UNLOADED. (Current and last week compared.) July 31......1.403.500 Aug. 1...... fiOS..500 Aug. 3......1..3.^5.O00 Aug. 4......1,7.33,000 Aug. 5......1,705.000 Aug. 6......1,591,.500 Total. .8,.390,5OO Aug. 7......1.454.500 Aug. 8...... 642,000 Aug. 10......1,424,500 Aug. n......1,451,000 Aug. 12......1,384.000 Aug. 13......1,496,500 Total......7.852,.500 1913. Left over, Friday A. M.. Aug. 8—66. Arrived. Sold Friday Aug. 8 ................. 8 fi Saturday, Aug. 9 ............... 8 6 Monday, Aug. 11 ...............12 6 Tuesday, Aug. 12 ..............3 1.5 Wednesday, Aug. 13 ............ 6 9 Thursday, Aug. 14 .............. 6 5 Total ....................... 43 49 Condition of market, dull. Prices: Hudsons, $6 to .$6..50; selects weak at $6.75; Newark, y^rd, .S7.75. Left over Friday a. m., Aug 15 1913—60. OFFICIAL SUMMARY. Left over Jan. 1. 1914 ................... §7 Total No. bargeloads arrived, including left over bargeloads, Jan. 1 to Aug. 13, 1914 993 Total No. bargeloads sold Jan. 1 to Aug. 13, 1914 ............................._ 972 TotTl No. bargeloads left over Aug 14 lf*14 ................................... 2i Total No. bargeloads left over Jan. 1, 1913. 113 Total No. bargeloads arrived, including left over .Tan. 1 to Aug. 14, 1913 ........... 119*;' Total No. bargeloads sold Jan, 1 to Aug. 14, Ii>13 ...................-............... 11.^7 Total No. bargeloads left over Aug. 15, 1913 60