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Real estate record and builders' guide: v. 67, no. 1735: June 15, 1901

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June 15, 1901. RECORD AND GUIDE. 1053 illl. iB 80^1868. Defies TO f^L EsTAjE. Suimijib ^^rrECTURjE JJ0ifSE3f(»ii Ite^ PRICE PEB YEAR IN ADVANCE SIX DOLLARS. PubKslied every Saturdaj/. TELEPHONE, CORTLANDT I370. Communications should be addressed to C. W. SWEET, 14-16 Vesey Street. /. T, LINDSEY, Business Manager. ••Entered at the Post-O-ffice of Xew Torh, N. 7,. aa seconi-elass matter." Vol. LaVII. JUNE 15,1901. No. 1735. r^ HANGES in stock market quotations are still produced \^ mainly by professional operations and the buying of specialties by interested parties. Railroad securities continue to be in favor, and sustained by increased traffic, easy money and public confidence, and also a paucity of floating supplies. The news item of the week calling for most attention is that the Pennsylvania had placed itself in a position of independence in regard to its supplies of rails and other iron and steel sup¬ plies, of which it consumes large quantities each year, as well as to control the tonnage of a large industry. This fact, if fact it be, must lessen the investor's esteem for the listed steel stocks. Tbe railroads have been, and still are, the largest customers of the steel concerns, but if each of the big combinations can go into the business of making its own rails, those concerns must keep prices down to satisfy these customers at the peril of losing their business and probably inviting competition also in some of the lines of manufacture left to them and which are collateral to the making of railroad supplies. The position of the outside steel concern in the event of the railroad system making its own iron and steel supplies would be one not merely of business curtailed by loss of a most irnportant line, but one of competition in that and other lines with an organization that controlled the important item of carriage. Hence it may be taken for granted tbat the steel companies will do nothing to encourage the establishment of independent railroad plants; yet all the while they will see that this is probably the next step in the concentration of the railroad business. The final result would be an organization controlling the carrying business of a large section of the country and independent of all others for its own supplies. It may be claimed in answer to this tbat the relations of the owners of the big steel concern and more than one great system of railroads make it impossible that antagon¬ ism should arise hetween them at least, hut even this would put the steel concern under the necessity of seeing that the railroads friendly to it were not prejudiced by their dependence upon it for their iron and steel. IN the reduction of the Bank of England's rate of discount and the failures of speculative ventures reported from Europe this week we recognize equal symptoms of one complaint, name¬ ly, failing business and consequent lack of confldence. With the accumulations of money at the great flnancial centres, which are growing very fast, there ought to be a speculative movement in government bonds, provided, however, that the present dul¬ ness of the foreign markets is not indicative of further and worse trouble known in innermost circles of finance but yet to he communicated to the public. With a market rate for money ruling at less than the interest on the bonds, and the latter selling at a considerable discount—Consols, for instance, at more than 6 per cent.—these issues aught to prove attractive to the owners of idle money with conservative tendencies, and will doubtless soon do so, subject to the proviso already named. It is reported from the other side that this market is depressed by the return of British and German bonds from New York. If this is so, it is probably due to the want of a regular market for tbem at this centre; and, seeing the favor with which these issues were received here, it is remarkable that arrangements were not made to deal in them on the New York Stock Exchange, where a foreign bond department would hest recognize our new relations with the rest of the world and at the same time give those of our citizens who wish tb possess foreign govern¬ ment bonds an opportunity of purchasing them from those hav¬ ing tbem, and who, for any reason, do not. An important event in its way is the resumption this week of offlcial reports of the Rand gold production, after an interval of over a year and a half. The first report since the outbreak of the war, that fof May last, did not record a large result—7,000 ounces only—^but It is significant of a renewal of the contributions to the world's gold supply from this source that will now go on uninterruptedly and grow as it goes. A country though at one time very much to the front, of which little has been heard of late years, sends news of a cheerful character. This is Argentina, which seems to have recovered from its crisis of eight years ago and to be meeting its obligations as they mature. Those payable in Lon¬ don on July 1st amount to $6,500,000, and it is reported that the money is already deposited to redeem them. Moreover, expendi¬ tures of last year were $4,400,000 below estimates, and income $246,000 above. Altogether, official reports show a return to prosperity under wholesome enforced economy. The Public and the Property Owner. THE able report of the commission appointed to appraise the value of the property taken for the new Sixty-ninth "Regiment Armory, which is given elsewhere in this issue, is an important as well as able document, in that it brings up for discussion several issues that have for years been smouldering below tbe surface, and which have caused not a little feeling between property owners and their representatives and the officials whose duty it is to acquire property for public purposes. One of these questions is the unnecessary length of condemna¬ tion proceedings, and another the adequacy or inadequacy of the compensation awarded owners for property taken in the exercise of the right of eminent domain. As to the first of these questions: Hitherto, when a proceeding has been prolonged beyond what was thought to be a reasonable time, the blame has been bestowed upon the Corporation Counsel and the particular commissioners who may have had charge oE tbe matter; and their reply that counsel for tbe property owners were as much at fault as the system of condemnation created by law bas not often had the effect in changing public opinion that it ought to have had. The commissioners in tbe case of tbe Sixty-ninth Regiment Armory distinctly make the charge that that case has been unnecessarily prolonged by the necessity on the part of the city's attorney of meeting evidence as to values of property-owners' experts that ought never to have been offered. It is asserted that the wide discrepancies between owners' claims and the sums finally awarded prove this, but it may be remarked that these are phenomena of condemnation cases everywhere. Whether tbe expedient of putting in an ex¬ travagant claim is one of any wisdom we doubt, especially as it always appears to he defeated by the city's attorneys, who are constantly living iu expectation of it. The commission's remedial suggestion that the. interests of both parties would be met hy the agreement of both sides on a body of experts to ascertain values instead of each individual owner producing Ms expert witnesses, is one that would doubtless shorten the actual proceeding, as well as give more satisfaction to the property owners, as was proved in the Elm st widening case, where, al¬ though complaints of delay were made, they had reference only to the prolonged deference of payment after the awards were made and approved by the Supreme Court. The charter that will come into force next year does some¬ thing for the relief of property owners involved in condemnation proceedings, but it does not touch the most important question of all—^that of the scope and measure, of compensation. Here remains occasion for agitation for further change in the law. The theory upon which a commission must act is that the owner is entitled simply to the hare market value of the build¬ ing and land taken. The commission, in the case under view, lay this down in their report as the rule that guided them by saying: "As between private parties, the owner may place upon his property whatever value he ipleases as a condition of parting with it, but when public interest intervenes and the city takes the property for puhlic use the personal considerations of the individual must give way, and for the sake of the public pur¬ pose which is to he served the individual is obliged to accept the money market value of tbe property so taken." They support tbis by quoting an opinion of Justice Andrews, who, while up¬ holding it as a principle of law in this State, disclosed its in¬ justice by admitting tbat often property owners do not receive adequate compensation. It is singular that, though the proceed¬ ings of the two countries are grounded in precisely the same legal principle, the right of eminent domain is much more harshly exercised in this than in Great Britain. Here we allow nothing for business destroyed, plants disturbed and injured, or for the taking of property witbout the owners' consent, as they do there, but simply tbe market value of lauds and build¬ ings taken, without regard to the business interests that may be involved or the prejudice an owner may have to sell or beep that which is his, and which be may exercise in tbe presence of a private individual like himself.