Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 47, no. 1207: May 2, 1891

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May 2,1891 Record and Guide. 687 \* fst*rii<;hed 2r' '^^ ESTABLISHED"-^':^'W>RCH BV-^ 1868. De/oteO \o Rf^L Eswe BuiLDif/o AR^rfiTECTJi^E .Household Degoi^iioU. BUskJess A(Jd Themef of GeNeiV-^ l;JTt'\EsT PRICE, PER YEAR IN ADVANCE, SIX DOLLARS. Published every Saturday. Telephone, - - - . Cortlandt 1370, CommuDicatioDs should be addressed to C. W. SWEET, 14 & 16 Vesey St. J. T. LINDSEY, Business Manager. Vol. XLVII MAY 2, 1891. No. 1,207 NOTICE OF REMOVAL. The ptiblication offices of The Record and Guide have been removed to Nos. 14 a^id 16 Vesey street, over The Mechanics' and Traders' Exchange, a few feet ivest of Broadway. Subscribers should see that they are furnished with the four-page supplement to this number. THE stock market ha? for a week been resisting attempts to lower prices, and witli such success that quotationa differ from a week ago only in fractions, putting aside, of course, the exceptions which ari> al ways to be found from tlie general move¬ ment at any time. All tbiugs considered, even the most serious ones, the indications point to a continuance of the advance. Tbe operator has a not unnatural objection to buying back at his aelling jirice, and, when he sells, works and prays witb fervor for a reaction. He is so working and praying now. Sliould either be efficacious, tlie decline is likely to be moderate and its duration sliort. On Weduesday the operator for a fall quoted five reasons why prices should act according to bis wishes : The failure of a large financial institution, a rise in tbe Bank of England rate, the ordering of $5,000,000 of gold that day for ship¬ ment, the loss in net earning,? shown by the Burlington statement for March and the showing of the Union Pacific in its report for last year. Surely five good reasons ought to induce any one to sell? But in this case three of the reasons were lies, purely and simply, and two were exaggerated in importance. The strength of Bui'lingion, and with it the strength of the market, for in bear tinies it could not have withstood the bad news as it did, was fully demonstrated when on tbe issue of a report show¬ ing a loss of $891,745 in net earnings, notwithstand¬ ing a reduction of over half a million dollars in operat¬ ing expenses, tbe stock sold off but 8 per cent., and recov¬ ered most of the loss next day. Yesterday the cry waa that Mr, Gould was selling, and there were confident estimates that he had parted with 20,000 shares of his specialties, principally Missouri Pacific. If he did he had a larger proportion of the sales of those stocks than can reasonably be given him. Also it may be asked, if he did, what of itv It has been noticeable that the Gould stocks have not participated in tbe advance in the way the people who always know what Mr. Ooidd has done, is doing and will do, said they would as soon as hereturned to town; but it is characteristic of the Gould stocks to rest while the balance of the market is advancing, aud to advance while other stocks are resting or react¬ ing. Large speculative houses continue to advise their customers to take profits as they have done for ten days or more, which may assist a temporary decline, but for the long run are bullish, A feature of more importance and seriousness than any yet urged on the bear side, but not likely to be of immediate influence in the stock market, is the continued movement of gold to Europe; and in coin. The loss of ten millions of gold coin represents a loss in trading capacity of, say, from forty to fifty millions of dollars, aud in times of monetary scarcity would work serious damage to prices of securities, but is not noticed when funds are plentiful. The May requirements caused call money 011 the Board to advance to 6 and 7 per cent late in tbe day on Thursday, but the subsequent ease in loans indicated tbat there is furtber room for expansion of values before our gold shipments can be felt, and before that time we may hope to see the movement of gold west¬ ward to pay for the grain which Europe must take from us this year. There is a decided feeling in England that the American market will be the most favorable for operations in the near future, as can be seen by the greater attention which the London news¬ papers, in particular the Times, are giving to our markets and the news affecting our securities, and in this case it would be a pity if * by a bad break our markets are made unattractive to the English investor. A A BOUT the only weak stocks on the London market are the -^^*- , Argentine issues ; they are continuing to fall in that centre and in Beriin, So discouraging has the situation become that the project of organizing a sort of European intervention in Buenos Ayres is again coining to the front. It is proposed that the European Powers should establish a commission, as in Egypt, which would control the receipts and expenditure. As English interests are most at stake, it is now hoped tbat the great financiers and the English government would lend a willing ear to such a proposition, and, after England, Belgium and Germany are also sufficiently involved to aid in such an interven¬ tion. All hope has apparently been abandoned that a friendly arrangement with the Argentine government, whereby European investors would be protected, can be consummated. Some doubt is expressed, however, whether the Argentine officials would permit their country to go into a receivership in this fashion, and it is scarcely likely that the European powers would care touse coercive measures. Many meetings are being held iu France to protest against certain articles of the proposed new tariff law, but it must not be supposed that there is a movement in favor of free trade in general. The objections on the tariff bear only on duties on raw materials and natural products, whicJi are re-exported as manufactured articles, the position of the protestants being in short substantially thatof the tariff reformers in this country. The quarrel is growing very acrid, with the issue still very dubious. In Berlin the market is going from bad to worse, and it is difficult to discover any outlook for improvement. The fact is interesting, that a report written by the secretary to the Centrai organization of the Cham- ,bers of Commerce, who had been delegated to the United States in order to report on the possibilities of American agriculture, comes to the same conclusion, as does a recent American writer in the Arena, the conclusion, viz.: that before the close of this century the United States will cease to be a purveyor of cereals to Europe, because the rapid growth of home consumption will absorb the sur¬ plus and interrupt exports. The financial circles of Vienna are busily discussing the speech from the Throne with which the newly-elected Reichsrath was opened, and which has made a most favorable impression. The Government has come forward with a comprehen¬ sive scheme of economic reform. Efforts willbe made to accomplish some satisfactory arrangements betweeu employers and employes; the insurance againat accidents of working people lias given such excellent results on trial that it is to be extended ; the building trade is to organized, and this will bring with it an extension of freedom from taxes for newly-built houses, beginning with Lem- berg, to which has been granted twenty-five years of exemption. Nor is this all. The organization of trades unions ia to be extended to agricultural pursuits; a number of the rivers are to be improved for commercial purposes ; fire insurance for immovable property is to become obligatory and to be effected by the state ; the govern¬ ment is to purchase more railways and build local lines in many directions ; commercial treaties are to be concluded with foreign companies ; and many minor reforms are proposed. Is it not sin¬ gular that this -vast scheme of improvement has not received more attention from the newspapers ? THE State tax rate for the present year will be the lowest for forty-six years—standing at 1.38 mills against 2,34 for lb90. For this relief much thanks; butitis well to inquire how far this condition of things may be expected to remain permanent. According to Comptroller Wemple, the State, owing to a vigilant enforcement of the corporation and other special tax laws, has sufficient balance on hand to meet all demands on the general fund authorized by the present Legislature. The property tax will have to be used only for canal and school purposes. Furthermore, the Comptroller is "firmly convinced" that, hereafter, no necessity will exist for placing any burden on the property of the people to meet the requirements of the general fund. The direct tax-refund will remain untouched in the Treasury awaiting disposal at the hands of a subsequent Legis¬ lature. The collateral inheritance tax law is, in the main, responsible for this satisfactory condition ot affairs, and the income from tbis source will be increased by the statute taxing the direct inheritance of personal property. With every wish, however, to be as firmly convinced as is the State Comptroller that the future requirements of the general fund will be met without recourse to the property tax, we must confess to .a rooted distrust. Itwill doubtless be very pleasant for the backwoods statesmen to return to their constituents with the good tidings of a lessened tax rate ; but the temptation will be constant, in spite of any increase of income from other aources, gradually to return to the fatter tax rates of the past. So long aa the property tax remains aa a means of raising an indefinitely large sum of money, so long will our legis¬ lators be likely to use it so far as they dare. The permanent result in a few yeara ia more likely to be an increased atandard of expen-