Evening Star Newspaper, May 22, 1926, Page 17

REAL ESTATE BV /1|7 35°74114 111111 =) 1 DECLINING COMMODITY PRICES MAY REVOLUTIONIZE BUSINESS Bahson Says Competition ially From Abroad, an Is Growing Keener, Espe-. d the Public Must Aban- 22n Its Wasteful Ways of Living. BY ROGER W. BABSON. ,, BABSON PARK, Mass. May ‘Aside from :he stock market decline, the event of the past three months | which should 110st interest business men. is the declining tendency of commodity prices. Such prices hegan to advance duectly after the election of Coolidge in November, 1924. With the exception of a small dip in the Spring last year, the advance was continuous until the close of 192 Since late in January this vear there has been a constant declining tend- ency. Since the war Burope has fast come back as a producer of both grains And commodities. As resnlt the de riand for our food products has heen greatly curtailed. Domestic wheat supplies are small, hut there is plenty oi wheat. taking the world whole. Moreover. the world's acreage =tantly being increased We have an excess of corn in the United States, Corn In hogs fs the mosi profitabie in years. hut the majority of farmers had previously sold most of their sur- plus hogs. Corn is now selling at ahout the fiveyear average price prior to the war. Considering the fact that farmers’ costs are consid erably higher than hefore the war, this is a serious matter. Bye. flaxseed and other crops are in abundance. Hog prices are still high, but cattle prices are fairly low. Shrewd farmers eannot now see higher prices imme- diately for any Important farm y uects and fear even lower prices for some. During _the war capacity, of our plants States and Canada--was greatly in- eased above normal requirements Hence tmmediately following the war there was a great decline in prices, This decline was checked with the Re publican* vietory, which put heart into wholesale buyers of merchandise. Re. tail sales, however, have not come up to_expectations. There again de- veloped among manufacturers and job. bers a hesitant attitude. Many lead- ing industries are curtailing opera- tions. Competition is hecoming mor severe every day. This competition is not only local, but Europe is hecoming a real competitive fact and each month is sending more and me manufactured goods into the United States and Canada. Foreign Competition Harmful. Ax to what Europe is doing is hest expressed by the following estimated fizures of our foreign trade during | the first three months of 1926. (Com puted in millions of dollars): | Balance | Imports. ‘against | us. | 417 388 115 the producing in the United Exports. . 39 8 70 5 Mareh Total These figures are not important of themselvas. We have so much gold on the American continent that we can well afford—even to our own well- being—to send more of it back to Eu rope in settlement of an unfavorable trade balance. The importance of | these figures is largely indicate, namely, that European man- ufacturers are constantly selling more and more in the United States and Canada and will soon become serious | competitors. Rusinsas failures suggest that com- petition, hoth local and foreign, is he- ginning o hurt. The death rate REAL ESTATE {’A DECLA . 112 Ever-Increasing Populatio tial City and Its Wealth Tend to Stabilize as Well as Stimulate Buil BY JAMES P. SCHICK, Pxacutiva Sacretary. Washington Real Estate Roard “What Is the basis for the stability of real estate values In the District of Columbia?” 1s a question which is con- stantly propounded to realtors and | othars familiar with real estats opara- | tions hera. Without attempting to | analyze the situation or to arrive at a | technical solution of the question. one | twn characteristics of Washington | and its citizenry undoubtedly have a large hearing on the stability of the values of Wathington property. Washington is primarily a residen- | tial eity, and although having:but few industries to attract permanent resi- dents, its growth has been not only steadily upward but quite phenomenal. Tt in pointed out that in 1890 the popu Iation of Washington was a little more than 200.000, and that in 1900 it was about 285,000 Recently -the United States Census Bureau announced that the city had passed the half-million mark in ite population. which indi cates that in 35 years the city has grown two and one-half times its size in 1890, and that in 25 vears it has practically doubled its population. 1In the last 15 vears it has added 50 per | cent to its population. and in the last | 5 years the growth has been between 15 and 20 per cent Washington always has been re- puted to have a large transient popu- lation, but a survey shows that its permanent population is growing at the rate of about 1.000 persons per month. This large growth in popula- tion naturally causes a_great demand for places of ahode. RBased on four persons to the family, its present rate of growth requires the completion each month of 230 new homes whether they take the form of indi- vidual houses or apartments, and this ws fAnd iz about 10 for each working day. It naturally follows that with _ | pounds for a dollar. in what they | {be rodded fop and hottom, attached RED ON SOUND BASIS | of its beauty and appeal as a residen- among new concerns which have never been through a business depression {s now increasing - very rapidly. The truly successful captain of indus- try is he who can weather a hard | gale. Any one can sail a business ship when the seas are calm. Moreover, when prices are risng it is merely ’er sailing with the wind. From now | on some careful “tacking” will be nec- jessary, even if there are no storms. | Overhead must be cut, expenses re- .duffd and competition must be met | by working hard and attending to i business. Outside things must he cut out Hand-to-mouth buying will con- tinue for some time 1o come The Good Old Days! I am often asked if the “good old idays’—when prices were low and Jevery one worked will ever return. | It was not so many vears ago that we | could get a square meal for 25 cents. | | could buy a suit of clothes for $13. could | buy mood shoex at §3 pa pair. could | get board and room for week. and | when we paid only $1.50 for the |row seats in the hest theaters. Then | milk was 5 vents a quart. cigarettes | | were 5 cents a package with a picture | | thrown in: street can fares were b | vents per ride and ice cream. sodas | were 5 cents per drink, and we all went to the nickelodian or a >-cent | | movie for our fun. The doctor in those days charged | only $1.50 per visit: the dentist pulled |a tooth for a quarter; steak was cenis per pound: sugar sold at 25| and the butchers | used to give us liver for the dog! OF | | course, wages were then much lower | in"d everybody worked. People then | bought washboards Instead of oui | boards and developed inst i of golf courses and subdiv win this time ever again return” Frankly, I do not know, by b been a tendency in thix direction « ing the past few monihs. Living ex- | penses musi come down or 4 per | cent of our families will wind up the bankruptey courts. Whether this | decline in living costs will come ahout | through declining prices or through | zetting on with less gasoline, less new | clothes and less amusements, only the future can tell. Something. however is sure to happen. We can't continu long at the present pace with \\Hfi”'?fi.. loafing and speculating so prevalent State of Present Business This decline in commodity prices during the past few menths has been | reflected in the trend of business as a whole. The Babsonchart, which stood at 15 per cent above normal Janu 1, 1926, now registers 8 per cent above normal. Of course, this is might: fine when compared with 23 per cen: below normal in June, 1921. and w normal oniy a vear ago. Business still good, taking an average of lines and all sections—yes. very, v |Rood. You, however, asked me w {18 the most outstanding husiness eve | of the first quarier of 1956, and I have _tried to honestly answer the question | It is the declining tendency in com | modity prices which in many lines may cause revolutionary changes (Copsright, 1026.) | Beantiful | French Window Treatment. French windows may be treated in LANGLEY JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL The Home B demonstration at Thirteenth and Alaska avenue. STUDENTS VISIT MODEL HOME the Langley Junior High School yesterday visited the detached model home being erected as part of The Star’s ideal homes LANG_LEY HIGH STUDENTS VISIT ONE OF STAR’S MODEL HOMES Architect Explains Features at Special Trip—Stu- dents of Other Schools Expect to Make ? In addition to having created con- methods and details used in this out- siderable iInterest on the part of a|door elahoration of the model house were ex ined. number of ‘local and national organi-| Ennen | It is the intention of a zations the model homes demonstra-| i po teachers and prinet tion heing sponsored by The Star is|classes to some the model being utilized by a mumber of the| home projects being sponsored by The | teachers of the public schools of the Next week the class in archi-| Natlonal Capital as an_ ohject lesson the MeKinley Manual in home building and home owning heol will be one of the| A number of students of the Home es to visit some of the Club of Langley Junior homes. The members of the local High School visited one of the madel | chapter of the American Institute of detached houses heing erected at| Architects who are designing the | Thirteenth street and Alaska avenue | houses will explain the technical de-| yesterday. | tails of the architectural plans and number of s to take several ways; the undercurtains may | | the sash itself. or the bottoms may | hang loose. The overcurtaine may bhe the same as in casement windows, LUES IN D. €. | n of Capital as a Residen- ding Operations. Another fact in regard to the population of Washington which has | a bearing upon its values is the; wealth of its population. Although the District of Columbia comprises less than 40,000 acres it is pointed out that it has more gross wealth than at least nine States of the| Union. For the fiacal vear ending June 30, 1925, the citizens of Wash- ington paid more income tax than was pajd by the population in 29 other States and that . the total| Federal taxes paid by the citizens of | Washington for the same vear was | more than was paid hy the citizens in 25 other States. This fact would | indicate that many persons with suff- cient means to enable them to live in other cities have adopted Washington as their permanent residence because tial city. Their residence in the com- munity and the character of their in- vestments also tend to stabilize the | values of real estate. The realtors and builders in Wash- ington have sought to keep pace with the dethand upon them in furnishing homes for it ever-increasing popula- tion and there have been many high- class developmunts in the community. This fact is attested by statistics fur- nished by one of the Nation's well known commercial rating houses, which shows a tabulation covering building construction In 165 cities in the United States, including all the large and important cities. . From the standpoint of population Washington stands fourteenth among the cities of the United States, and in 1923 only seven cities spent more in buflding construction than was spent in Wash- ington. . In 1924 Washington stood ninth in the list from the standpoint | of expenditure for buflding construc- tion. Tt is pointed out that these few. ob- servations should create a confidence in the value of Washington real estate upon the part of owners, and the citi- this demand for homes and permanent places of residence the trend of value w —are becoming steadily more li <tanding are continually amazec Wooded and rolling s available. zenry of the United States should have a just pride in the splendid stability of thelr National Capita Woodlsn\.i. Drive Sites Massachusetts Park Vietor Mindeleff, the designing| construction problems to this class. | avchitect. welcomed the studenty and! Now that the houses are in course of | thoroughly explained the constrtetion! constrnetion it i« planned that a num-| of the residence. The party was con-|her of the technical and manual train. | ducted from cellar (o roof. and given|ing classes in the District public an opportunity to see first-hand the| school system will visit the projects. materials actually heing placed in| When the houses are fully com the home. | pleted and furnished a number of the The various labor-saving devices|classes in domestic science and home | were explained and reasons given for|economics will visit the projects. The their particular location. The paint.| party was in charge of Mrs. L. P.| thig wallpaper, size of the rooms. lighting eacher at | fixture locations, all of which are placed according to the latest modern methods, were throughly explained to the party. Considerable emphasis has been placed on the plans for landscaping particular residence and the Hartke, domestic science the Langley Junior High School. The party attending the Breuninger house yesterday showed particular in- terest in the builtin safe. the built-in jroning board. the combination sink and wishwasher and other attractive features of the house WASHINGTON 20 Per Cent An’ indication of the rapid growth in | Washington is found in the survey of building done fn the large cities from | Baltimore south during April. Wash Angton led all the Southern cities by considerably more than double the amount in new construction than its nearest competitor, St. Lou With a total of $8,658,885, the Na- tional Capital was approximately $5.- 000,000 ahead of hoth Baltimore and St. Louis and more than $5,000,000 |ahead of Miami In value of new con- struction last month. The month of April contributed very substantially to the marked progress of the Southern States, particularly in construction and industrial lines, ‘ac- cording to the monthly survey of the building construction research bureau of G. L. Miller & Co, 20 Per Cent Gain Noted. Building permits in 164 cities in 16 States reached a total of $77,240,811. In the 10 States of the farther South a gain of 20 per cent over the month of April, 1925, was shown, although in the 16 States the total was practi- call the same, the figures for April, 1925 being $76,887,909. The difference is accounted for by v losses in the | border cities of St: Louis, Baltimore, { Louisville and Kansas City. There was a slight loss also from LEADS SOUTHERN CITIES IN NEW CONSTRUCTION Total of $8,658,885 Puts Capital $5,000,000 Ahead of Baltimore, St. Louis and Miami. March, 1926, when a total of $82.455,- Rose Has go to work on WE and causes. mited. Washingtonians of long 1 at the splendid growth in this fuze residential community, which includes all that remains of The Triangle of Increasing Values between Cosuecticut, Massachusetts and Cathedral avenues. es for individually designed homes are now As the firm under whose management this restricted area has been cnccessinlly developed into one of the city’s fine sections, we are singu- larly prepared to iurnish accurate information. Park Office: 32d street and Cathedral avenue. Middaugh & Shannon, Inc. ESTABLISHED 1899 Riggs-Semmes Bldg., Dupont Circle, Potomac 2200 Roofing to a Science Gain Noted. 115 was recorded. Here, also, the loss may be attributed to decreases in the horder States. In industrial circles great impor- tance is attached to announcements affecting textile mills over a wide area. Goodrich tire fabric contracts placed with Southern mills necessitate the expansion of existing mills by 10,000 spindles and the huilding of a new 30,000-spindle plant. Florida and Texas Active. Florida and Texas continue to dom- inate the Southern construction field. The former recorded more than 20 millions, or a gain of 44 per cent, while Texas had its second 13-millior month and a gain of 42 per cent, in spite of a two-million-dollar loss at Dallas. Supstantial gains are shown in Tennessee and Virginia, both of which hettered their March figures by more than a million and also showed ex- cellent gains over 1925. Louisiana Shows Drop. The most considerable losses in tha farther South were in Louisiana, where unusually heavy &chedules were in progress last year. Houston again led all cities of the farther South fot the month, closely followed hy Miami and Tampa. Rir- mingham continues to rank high in Reduced your roof with expert the list. The princip e as follows: fooAutl !ADVERTISING DISCUSSED S BY SALES MANAGERS i Committee Will Try to Ban Mis- representations and Exaggera- Washington St Lou Baltimore Houston Miamy Tampa Louievi] Kansas Rirmingh Jackannville Amarillo St. Petersburg. Rnoxville ... L Fort Worth 709507 Memphis 764840 Other cities reporting were Wichita \Falls, $1,745.123: Richmond, $1,530,682 tions in Copy. The sales managers’ division of the Washington Real Estata Board met | under the chairmanship of Charles | Hillegeist at a luncheon at the City Dallae, $1 405887, Orlaade’ 1937 486, | Club Tuesday and discussed a num- Asheville, $1,200.109; Coral Gabl | ber of important problems affecting 052,850; Clearwater, $1.01 this branch of the real estate profes Orleans, $972,924; Atlunta. I g B g Of particular interest was the round- ach (§1S0ie80: SrnAntonio; table discussion on advertising. .J. Crutchfield is chalrman of the subcom. mittee on advertising and his commit- tee will see that all advertising of the hoard is kept on an ethical plane and let no exaggerations or misrepresenta tions enter into any copy that is print- ed by members. The question of sales, commissions and inter-office co-opera tion was discussed. The next meef ing of the division will be held Mon dav, May Refinishing Hints Given. When refinishing furniture it is es sential that the old surface he pre. pared for the new finish. First clean the furniture well with some reliabl preparation and then rough it up with No. 1 sandpaper to glve the old finish A tonth to which the new clinz. build them. tion. Big rooms; 3 big porches; modern bath; Only $500 Cash and $65 a Month 3121 8th St. N.W. ) The last of 33 Homes in this group that sold closets; artistic fixtures 14th St. cars to Take 9th St. cars to Gallatin St Kennedy St., or we will send auto. 5007 7th St. N.W. 6 Large, Well Arranged Rooms Large Screened Porches and Separate Garage This home is completely furnished by the Kauf- mann Furniture Co., 1415 H Street. 6 big rooms; 3 lifetime floors; best of kitchen porches; tiled bath; lots of big closets; hardwood nowledge—gained by long avperience— and ripened by careful study of conditions It takes more than mechanical skill to do a permanently good job on a roof. That is evidenced by the wonderful life of Rose roofs. When we get through with them, they are fixed to stay fixed. And that is why it is cheaper to have us do the work. Even the small bill can be budgetted for your greater compemwience in payment. 2120-22 Georgia Ave, COMBANY North 847848 £z 8,950 Financed the Cafritz Easy Way ~ Open9AM.to9 PM. Take 9th St. cars to Decatur—short walk east—or we will send auto. 14th &K R. | HOME & GARDEN 17 U. S. HOME EQUIPMENT SURVEY General Federation of Wo Better Co A thorough survey of home equip ment antl housekeeping facilities with a view to bettering home making Is | heing nationally conducted by the General Federation of Women's Clubs. The organization's headquarters fs in Washington and much Interest wili be manifested by fts various com mittees in conditions here. The activities of the organization in trying to better home conditions coincides with the effort of The Star | {o foster home ewnership. in the| National Capital and to beautify the | eity by improved architecture. | Women the country are mov ing enmasse to drive from the home | all needless household drudgery and, 1o instali in its pla telligent. suc- | «sful home.making. They are start |ing by getting the facts as to what | | measure of service in reducing house | hold lahor is new renderad by the | public utilities—-the principal enerzy resource of the modern home. When they know this they will work ent what further demands can he made | upon such energy to reiease the house wife from wasteful drudgery. Under the leadership of Mrs. John D. Sherman. president of the General | Federation. the department of the| | American home has not only been in-| troduced as one of the seven depart ments of work of that organization. | but has been strongly stressed and| practical plans have heen set in mo- tion to place the work of the home makers and housgkeepers of this country upon a higher economic and | | educational basis. | Overlooked In Census. The ery | vey | trade: over | | T'nited States (‘ensus« Bureau 10 vears makes a complete sur of the status of all hranches of industries and professions, but | the atest and most fundamental industry, that of home making, has jbeen overlooked by them Statisticians have computed the fol lowing figures relative to the economic value of woman's work in the home. The weekly pay roll of the 100,000 wives and home managers of the| United States would amount to $333 { 000000 weekly, if each were pald a| wage of $15 per week, or a total of $17.000.000,000 vearly. Successful housekeeping. other succeseful indust periodic and svstematic stock taking of methods and materials. An inquiry will be made as to whether the wives and home managers exhaust their| | mental and physical energies by out of-date and obsolete ways of doing their work and by the lack of labor | saving devices in their homes. | | Mrs. Sherman called upon the thou- sands of clubs comprising the General | Federation to conduct a nation-wide | survew of the equipment of these| | homes. to ascertain under what ad vantages. as well as limitations, the en were doing their task. he idea has heen strongly in- dorsed by President Coolidge. A | large committee of men, representing [ the public service officfals throughout {the country, also gave its hearty co- operation. This survey has heen con {ducted largely through the public | utilities agencies, using the data of their files to ascertain the desired facts. This is the first and only sur vey along this line which has ever been conducted in the country. Here. 1ofore, the homemaker and housewife, like any requires | composed person |at IS MADE TO REDUCE DRUDGERY men’s Clubs Makes Study Here and in Other Centers Looking Toward nditions. actording to the census reports, has bean an economic cipher, a woman without an occupation, and although acting in the capacity of cook seamstress, nurse, eral manage and purchasing agenc for the home. has had no economic recognition. Local Clubs Active. In co-operation with this movement of a nation-wide survey, the Federa tion of Women's Clubs of the District »f Columbia, through its committee »f the American home department, of Mrs. John W. Frizzell, past president; Mrs. Harvey W. Wiley and Dr. Minna Denton, head of the home economic department of George Washington University, condueted the fnvestigation for the City of Washing ton. and has secured data of the equipment the homes of the city along the lines of dwellings connected With water mains and sewer connec tions how many dwellings have modern heating plants: of how many are supplied with gas and electricity for heat and cooking and modern Jabor-saving devices. Those in charge have lea-ned bout the extent to which all homes have trash, garbage and ash collections Only by such a survey, periodically made, can be known the progress be. ing made in standards and conven jences of the American homes and of the liberation of women from need less drudgery. It is also very perti nent in the comparisons of the home conditions of its native and foreign horn e commitiee has received the most hearty and cordial co-opera- tion from the public utilities com panies_of our city, as well as from the Engineer Commissioner Rell The idea of this survey appealed to the public utflities companies so strongly that (. Melvin Sharpe of the Potomac FElectric Power Co. and Washington Railway and Electric Co has made the proposition to the com mittee to finance a supplemental sur. vey, through the medium of a ques tionnaire, which will be inclosed in the gas and electric light bill of every using these facilities in the off Thie courtesy has heen extended hv them in the past to the Red Cross to assist its great work. Believing and realizing that this supplemental sur- veyr is a thoroughgoing, civic move. ment. and may react in reducing needless labor through the use of these labor-saving improvements, thus liberating a great amount of time |and enerzy to the higher educational artistic and homes in the c of Washington spiritual uses of the . the homemakers will receive th cards inclosed in their monthly ar counts with this company. and the committee would greatly apprecate the hearty response and co-operation of all the homemakers who receive them The blennial of the General eration of Women's Clubs will open Atlantie City next Monday. Its keynote will ba “The Amerlean Home.” Reports will he given of all tha towns and cities which have had this survex carried on, and the com mittee in Washington wishes to make that from the Capital the most eom prehensive and outstanding that possible Fed FRITZ Owner and Builder of Communities Fastest Selling of all Homes Make Your Selection Now! Be sure to come tonight or tomorrow to see these Lifetime Homes, in these choicest locations in Pretty Petworth, before it’s too late. They ar e the last of the nearly 1,000 Homes we have completed in this popular community. Homes you cannot possibly match at the price—because it takes an organization like the Cafritz Construction Co.—operating on its enormous scale—to 810 Hamilton St. 2nd time offered ; only 2 left All 6 of the rooms are big, with master bedroom unusually big porches; built-in tub and shower; Financed the Cafritz Easy Way wardrobe closets; hard- wood floors;~deep back yard. Open 9 AM. to 9 P.M. Take 9th St cars to Ga. cars to 8th and Kennedy—walk west to houses. send aute. Prominent Corner Facing broad Illinois Ave. at Hamilton St. Beautiful center-hall type—of 8 enormously big rooms; built-in tub and shower; servant’s tailet i =°13,950 somely paneled walls and artistic Financed the Cafritz Easy Way lighting fixtures. Open 9 AM. to 9 P.M. Best location in Petworth. Take 14th St. cars to Kennedy, 9th St. ca: or we will send auto. Ave. and Hamilton Street; 14th Or we will to Hamflton. M. 9080