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Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 26, no. 665: December 11, 1880

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Real Estate Record AND BUILDERS' GUIDE. ml Vol. XXVI. NEW YORK, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 11, 1880. No. 665. Published Weekly by ® Ije %m\ Estate ^Retorb l^ssocmtioit, TERMS, ONE YEAR, in advance....SIO.OO. Communications should be addressed to C. ^W. SIVEET, No. 137 BBOAnwAV NEW PHASE OF THE TRANSPORTA¬ TION QUESTION. What will be the relation of the railway transportatioa lines in the futvire to the ex¬ press companies, the palace car combina¬ tions and the fast freight lines ? These or¬ ganizations were formed inside the railway systems to effect what the companies were not prepared to do for themselves—^the palace cars to carry passengers from one end of the country to the other, the express com¬ panies to transi^ort parcels, valuable and light articles of freight to different parts of the country at an advance upon the ordinary rates, while the transportation lines dealt with the several roads and formed practi¬ cally a trunk connection between the farm regions of the interior and the great mar¬ kets of the country and the ports on the sea coast. It must be borne in mind that these or¬ ganizations sprang uj) and were in active operation before the railway system was de¬ veloped, and prior to the consolidations and pooling arrangements which are fast limiting the number of railway systems to three or four. Now, that all the roads are becoming either transcontine?:)tal or feeders to great interstate lines running from the Atlantic to the Pacifio coast, is it not probable that they will change their relations to the palace car companies, the express companies and the transportation Knes ? Already the Wabash system of roads is carrying express packages. The Baltimore & Ohio Road is fighting the Pullman Palace Car Company, and the poolitug arrangements inade by the great trunk - lines are doiug away with the necessity for freight transportation lines— the Merchants' Express and the like. In other words, as the combinations of railway direction becomes greater and have a larger area of country to cover, they have been enabled to provide for the freight and pas¬ senger traffic, which has heretofore been monopolized by these parasitic organiza¬ tions. The profits which legitimately be¬ longed to the railway companies, have in the past been frittered away upon organiza¬ tions which lived only because the com¬ panies themselves could not transact all their business. But, will the public be benefited ? We judge not, for the present. The gains of the express, i)alace car companies and transportation lines will, in all probability, hereafter be divided between the inner circle of railway officials. This generation will never know the profits made by the leading railway magnates from what may be termed the secondary business brought into exist¬ ence by the railway lines. Apart from their interests in the roads, the VanderbUts and others are holders of palace car stock, of stock yards stock, they all will also be large liolders of refrigerating car stock when these come into more active use. Then, they are enabled to provide immense fortunes in land for their heirs by investments in real estate in the neighborhoods of depots they I)ropose to establish. Thousands of vast fortunes are being rendered possible within the next twenty years by the selection of sites on the new lines running to the Pacific. All along the Southern, Union, Central and Northern Pacific Roads the land has already been appropriated, which, in the fullness of time, will bring colossal fortunes to the de¬ scendants of the present race of railway directors and manipulators. When the roads begin to do the express, palace car and transportation business, it will inure to the benefit of the immediate asso¬ ciates of the great railway magnates. But, in time this abuse will be corrected. The uni¬ fying of the railway systems will enforce the responsibility of the directors not only to the public, but to the government. These facts cannot be always hid—they wiU be too pal¬ pable, &nd, after a period of abuse, in which the people will be exj^loited, proper legislation will bring about a remedy. It is not improb¬ able that some of the great railway lines will purchase the good will and business of the express and palace car companies, but yet it must be remembered that corporations, literaUy, have no souls. In dealing with the government they exact a heavy premium for their vested rights. In dealing with one another they have no compassion. On several of the roads the express companies have already been peremptorily ordered off. The courts have so far taken the conservative view and have admitted that they have some rights which the existing corporations must respect. It is, however, safe to predict that within the coming decade the railways will themselves do their own express and palace car business, as well as secure the profits now absorbed by the freight transportation lines.. mtist congratulate the Various committees that they have at last agreed upon a site, and now fervently hope that they will succeed in raising the funds requisite for this vast enterprise, within the time speci¬ fied by law, January 10. It is a pity that an agreement as to a site was not reached at the very outset, and the disagreements may have led to the withdrawal of cai^ital that ought to have been subscribed ere this. Nevertheless, this tardy but unanimous se¬ lection of Inwood may yet induce capital¬ ists, hotel keepers, railroad magnates and others to supply the money necessary to make the exhibition a grand success. With¬ out this preliminary assurance, of course, it would be idle to anticipate' great results fi'om an undertaking that must be excelsior in all its various details, so that New York can be proud, indeed, of the Interna¬ tional Exhibition to be held within its borders. Its projectors have the very best of wishes for success. It depends upon their energy and intellect now whether they will or can take judicious advantage of the good wfil that bids them God speed. Time is short; two years pass by very rapidly, and with due foresight success may yet be as¬ sured. Inwood, the site selected, can be reached from the Grand Central Depot in fifteen minutes. Some of the Hudson River steam¬ boat companies own land near by and have only to drive piles down to make lauding places. There is forty feet of water at the landing. The tract selected has a mile frontage on the King's Bridge road, and a mile frontage on the Harlem River. In the 250 acres which it contains there are 4,350 lots. The land is held by about fifty owners- THE INWOOD SITE. The quaint saying of the Hibernian gentle¬ man that "the site for the World's Fair would be selected after the Fair has been held" will not prove true after all. We RAPID TRANSIT ON THE HUDSON. Wo have heard a great deal of late of the transval district, which includes the iregion known as Carmansville,Washington Heights and Inwood. There can be no manner of doubt that there is a grand future for this district, situated as it is on the borders of tlie Hudson, and embracing some of the most beautiful grounds known on and around Manhattan Island. An effort has been made recently to bring this section more promi¬ nently into the real estate market and to urge upon investors the propriety and advantage of lodging their spare funds in the soil of that section. No one, of course, can find fault with the efforts of those interested to bring this locality more prominently to the front. But the sound proverb that " God will only help those who help themselves," comes in quite appropriately right here. Why do not the owners of property in and around Inwood, which extends from Fort 1 I. 1^