Columbia University Libraries Digital Collections: The Real Estate Record

Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 50, no. 1289: November 26, 1892

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November 36,1898 Record and Guide. 681 lif#í'fe ^^ A ESTABUSHEU'^MARpHílíí'^ieStt.;^ Jto&ÍED To ^í EsTWE. BuiLoif/c AjîciíiTEcrnjRí .HovsDlou) DreoBAnai PRI€E,*PER TEAR IK ADTANCE, SIX DOLLARS. Published eeery Saturday. TBLKPHONBT .... COBTLANDT 1370. CommunicationB Bhould be addressed to C. W. SWEET, 14 & 16 Vesey St. J. 1. LINDSEY, Business Maimger. "Eíntered at tfie Poat-offlcc at Neio York, N. Y., aa aeeond-class matter.'" VOL. L. NOVEMBER 36, 1892. No. 1,289 IF the stock marbet were an active one, and prices saggedas they have beeũ doÍDg for the past two or three weeks, it would be easy to see that ît tcust develop iũto a regular bear luarket. But with busiaess in the comtaission houses as dull as it is, it is not safe to predict any great fall in prices. Tbat tlie profesaional element is bearish and by attacks here and there brÍQg prices generalJy down somewhat, does not matter much, because if the public should decide that stocks aie cheap, ĩt would soon take the wbole market away from the traders, as it has so often done just prior to a bigadvance; but it is not lilsely to take hold as long as there ífi danger of further gold shipments. While the public is indifFerent aud the tradershave the market to themselves, it may be expected thaL tbey wiU continue their present operations, under the belief that prices must come down, To assist the hoped for resuit it is asserted tliat when the new administration takes hold Ít will dis- organize business by radical changes of the tariff, and that eucb changes willcompelthegovernmenttogointotbemarket withanew loan in order to meet the demands now exĩstingou the national income, Sensible people or scrupuloue people would prefer that the admînistrationitself shouldaonouDceitspolícy, andtheyknow that it is very dilîficult if uot impossible to predict what will be the exact result of tlie adoption of a particular policy or measure. TheSiIver Act oE 18911 ought to be a sufficient example of this. When that Act waa paesed where was the prophet to foretell that to-day silver wbuld be selling at nearly its lowest price? But on the stock market any story goes. It îs singular, too, that those with the least founda- tion have the most influence. The fact that the Spanish govern- ment was again in bad straits for money and had ai^ain to go to Paris for help had very little influence, though sucb a fact niight have a very serious influence on the European financial world and by sympathy on this. There is an idea afloat, too, that the raih-oads have reached a bad periotl between two good ones; the consequences of the largecropof lastyearhavÍDg exhausted themselves, and those o£ the World's Fair not having had time to be felt. If that were true it would not be agood reason íor anticîpating abear mar- ket; it would be very siugular if prices could not fairly sustain thenseĩves over such an interval. ĩf tbe good time had gone and left nothing further to rely upon it would be another thing, but with tbe railroads put into good shape by tlio large earnings of the past year or more, and witb more good busĩbess comiũg in a few nionths, as certain as any one can reasonably ask it to be, it would be slrango if their securíties seriously declined in value. Another fact that is influencing the market considerably and legitimately is the knowledge that several parties which have been trying to market induslriaĩ stocks bave been unable to flnd buyers for them, and have them still on their hande, only at advauced quotations. The putting of tliese at prices at whicb the people, who arenow bearing the burden, could find relief would, of course, disorganize the market temporarily, and the fear of Ihis h^s its effect. The stand-up figbt in cordage is still goiug on, its opponents refus- ingalloíîers of settlement, continuingto sell short as tbe price is advanced; its friends meantime have to carry most of the stock because outsiders having fought shy of it for a long time, and never having had much more than a speculative interest in it. the country. The history, the moral and materĩal coodition and progrese of the United States are inextricably bound up with immi' gration, and any steps in the direction of restriction should be made with the utmost caution and upon only the mostpositive grounda, An experimentai " do-something" course would be the height of lolly and it would be equally foolish to act in the inlereets of any limited class, or for small reasons, however valid they might be in themselves. Labor, that very indeflnite part of tbe community, is Bupposed to favor restrictive measnres in its own interests, aod if F,ny pressure shoidd be felt by tbe Chandlfr Committee it will come from Labor. But, it is very doubtful whether immigration bas as great an effect one way or the other upon organized Labor, as ia stipposed at times. The presaure of imraĩgration is not greatest upon the ekilled trades. A very large proportion of the immi- grants arriving on our shores are mere bewersof wood and drawers of water. The women and children, too, do not crowd into the skilled tradea. Of the remainder there are relatively few whom any manufacturer would be willing toemploy,evenat loworwages, in preference to a native-born workman; and of these, how many are they that could take their places at once, for instance, on a buildiug in the course of erectîon, or at a loom, or in foundry or factory ? Even tbe most skilled need sonie years of apprenticesbip to American metbods and practices. The Contract Law bears testimony t> the unskilled character of immigration; for if highly skilled laborf rs were coming to this couutry by tbousands annually, why not engage their ser- vicea at Caatle Garden, instead of in Europe ? But what emplojer of skiUed labor ever seeks Castlc Garden for help ? The fact ie our immigrants are not maiuly or even in any considerable numbers, weavera or spinners, or engineers, or iron puddlere or dyers, but chieHy the better part of the multitude of the unskilled or the relatively uuskilled which the rigorous competition oE older countries has, rejected, Theee are the people upon whom we have depended from the beginning [of our history for the rough, hard work of building up the country. It is very doubtful whether we are yet in a posifcion to say that we have had enough of them. Amid these thousands and tlie other hundreds more ekilled than they, there are no doubt a certain number of undesirable cuetomers. Itwould, it goes with- out saying, be a good thing if we could shut out "the proportion of evil" in immigratiou as Íu our other affairs, but itia a very diflficult tbing to gather any barvest of any sort without having to take the undesirable proportion witb it. Senator Chandler will not, we think, deviae a plan to accomplish that, Of coiirae, we can pur- chase almost anything—at a cost. ALL legal requirements appear to be fulflUed in reference to the new bridge of the East River Bridge Company. A short time since the Board of Federal Engineers approved the plans of the com- pany to erect a bridge just as bigh above the water as is the preeent bridge. Now the New York Board of Aldermeu havegrantedto the company the right to eonstruct, operate and maiutain the New York approaches to the two bridges which it proposes to build over the East River. This action was tobe expected, considering the large aniount of political intiiieoce bebind the corapany, Tammany and tbe Kings Couuty Democracy are very " harmonious " just now, Tbe result of it all is that the company îs free to go ahead and do some work which can be taken as tangible evidence of its íntention to erect immediately at leaat one of the two structures proposed. Such action ought to be taken as soon as possible, if onlytoquiet tbe attacks of tliose enemies of the corapany who claim that it is the same sort of a corporation as the New York & New Jersey Bridge Company. Furtherraore there is no time to be lost, Brook- lyn needs the bridge at this very moment. IT is not easy to determine how much real interest the publictake in the '■ imrnigration queation." It is Just the eort of subject whicli demagogy deligbts to dealwith; it offers so many oppor- tuuities for a blatant interest in everybody'a welfare; and, besides, it ia one uf those ratber involved problems like Bimetalliam and the Tariff, wbich are beset with a great number of pitfalls for the '■average intelhgence." Wise action in the matter depends upon a very nice consideration and balancing of a nmltitude of diverse facts, SenatorChandler'sCommitteeof Inquiry wÍU probably begin their labors in this city on Mondaj, and if they make an impartial, thor^uffh investieation tlieir service will be of immense value to \ _____________________. ___ IN the matter of the passenger rates to the World's Fair Ihere is an unmistakable discord between the interests of the railroads and thuse of the public, It is manifestly most deeirable, from the public point of view, that the fares should be reducrd as much as possible. Such a reduction would enable a great many people to take the trip who otherwise would be prevented from 90 doing, and it is very much to be wished, for the sake of the Faĩr and for the sakeof the people, tliat tbeattendauce should be as large as pos- sible. In case Lhe government secured the railroads, a fair caae would apparently be established for the traneportation of the passengers at cost. The American people are not likely to have another opportunity of similar importance formany years lo come. At tírat blush it wonld seem as if the interests oE the railroads lay very rauch in Ihe same dii-ection, That is, it is apparently to their interest to establish a rate which would attract to tht-ir cars as many passengers as they could carry at a proût. The araountof travel offeriog is always an iraportant consideration (o them In determíning a schedule, and when by lowering tbe schedule they can largely add to their business they are genetally willing to make a special late. Thus, members of the Grand Army of the Republic obtained special farea to Washiugton from all over the country. The circumstaacen oí liie present