Evening Star Newspaper, December 14, 1929, Page 14

M REAL BUILDING VOLUME DROPS INNOVEMBER Figures for 37 States East of Rockies Cover 91 Per Cent of Total. During the month of November con- struction contracts were awarded to the extent of $391,012,500 in the 37 States east of the Rocky Mountains, according to F. W. Dodge Corporation. Thesc States include about 91 per cent of the total construction volume of the country. The decline from the October total ($445,642,300) was a little more | 8 The | & than $54,000,000, or 12 per cent. decrease from the November, 1928, total ($471,482,200) was about $80,000,000, or 17 per cent. The New York and North- | j ern New Jersey district and the North- west were the only two districts show- and increases over the October, 1929, and November, 1928 records. The November construction record brought the amount of new building and engineering work started in the 37 States since the first of this year up to $5,437,922,400, as compared with $6,- 195,529,800 for the corresponding period of ltut year, the decrease being 12 per cent. Analysis of the past month’s build- ing record showed the following active classes of work: $113522,800, or 29 per cent of all construction, for residential buildings; $101,769,200, or 26 per cent, for commercial buildings; $72.361,100, or 19 per cent, for public works and utilities, and $39,673,900, or 10 per cent, for industrial construction. New work reported in the contem- plated stage in_the 37 Eastern States amounted to $720,301,000. This total represents a loss of 10 per cent from the amount reported in the preceding month and a drop of 23 per cent from ;;n;a amount reported in November of ‘The Middle Atlantic States (Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, District of Col- umbia and Virginia) had $41,363,000 in awarded contracts for new building and engineering work. The above figure was 20 per cent below the preceding month's record and a 24 per cent loss was re- corded from the corresponding month of last year. The following were the most prominent classes of work during tie month: $13,992,100, or 34 per cent of all construction, for residential buildings; $7,060.100, or 17 per cent, for educational buildings; $6,326,500, or 15 per cent, for public works and utilities, and $5,607,000, or 14 per cent, for com- mercial construction. Total contracts awarded for the first 11 months of this year amounted to $650,110,400, which compares with $735,710,700, the amount contracted for during the corresponding period of last year. New work reported as contemplated in the Middle Atlantic States for No- vember amounted to $81,561,100. as against $72,835,300 for the preceding month, an increase of 12 per cent; but when compared with the November total of last year there was a drop of 53 per cent. AMERICANS HELD POOR JUDGES OF BUILDING Enow More About Motor Cars Than They Do About Homes, Is Claim. Stating his belief that the American people are better judges of motor cars than houses, James A. Taylor, lc(lng chief of the Division of Building an Housing of the Department of Com- merce, recently said: “Notwithstanding the fact that American people have become better in- formed during the past few years as to th2 points of a good home, most Amer- icans are still much keener judges of motor cars than they are of houses. “A man does not buy his car on the basis of its uphoistery; with a limited emount to spend he should not buy a house principally because it has an elec- tric button to open the cellar door, when what a family reelly needs is a com- fortable, clean, attractive place to live.” Mrs. Moody Buys House. Mrs. Orrell Moody has purchased the new detached brick residence at 4409 Eighteenth street. The house, acquired through the agency of N, L. Sansbury Soheonnms eight rooms and two al e Tier Buys Dwelling. Irving C. Tier has bought the mod- ern six-room dwelling at 1531 Spring place. It was purchased for Margaret McGraw through the office of N. L. Sansbury Co. ORI Colonial Doors Have Wide Use. Colonial doorways are infinite in variety. They can reflect the utmost | Rhoda, she who 15 ESTATE. SYNOPSIS. After the death of her father, whose last years were ciouded by poverty and disgrace. Rhoda McFarland calls herseif Rhoda White, hoping to escape the guardianship of her uncle. William Royce. ind de- nies any knowledge of the matter. Forbes retrieves the trunk., which was stolen by Max and Claire, before he can tell e named Forster, 3 who, according ta . had been Mr. McFarland's enemy and is the person responsible for the ads. She tells him of the theft of the trunk and of her meeting with Claire. Mr. McParland's disgrace. Then he goes away. leaving Rhoda a prisoner. Forbes, acting on & hunch, goes to Forster's hotel ind finds Rhoda. A few minutes later Claire comes to see Forster. In the quarrel that follows he shoots her. Unnerved by the turn of events he confesses to Rhoda his part in the plot that ruined her father. When Forbes takes Rhoda home her unele PETTY'S ADDRESS CONCLUDES FORUM Board Official Points Out Washington Had First Spe- cific Ethics Code. but, ‘The real estate forum at the Y. M. C. A. came to a close for this year this week with an address by John A. Petty, executive secretary of the Washington Real Estate Board, who has acted as chairman of the forum, in which he declared that the local realtors’ asso- clation was the first in the country to adopt a specific code of ethics. Prior to 1921 members of the Na- tional Association of Real Estate Boards for many years subscribed to an enu- meration of general principles of prac- tice based on the Golden Rule. At the time of the reorganization of the Wash- ington Real Estate Brokers' Association, predecescor of the Washington Real Estate Board, in 1921, there was adopted a definite code of ethics, he said. “This code set up a group of rules to cover actual and specific transac- tions, and it has embraced real estate ractice in such a comprehensive man- ner that there have been no amend- ments to it since its adoption,” Mr. Petty states. “About three years after its adoption the national association re- vised its code of ethics and adopted a national code for use of member boards throughout_the country, and this fol- lows very closely the detalls of the code %:na(c;d and in use by th: Washington purchase notes, lots and improve real estate for much the same reasons. They are actuated by the same mo- tives. This being true, it was possible to conceive a fundamental manner in which specific transactions and broker activities could be covered universally by standard ethics. While there is a difference in real estate law in various States, the method, conduct and ideals of real estate yen have been reduced to specific terms in a manner that can be used universally. Basicly, the code of realtors is the application in actual business transactions of th: Golden Rule. It embraces the obligation and responsibilities of a broker in his con- tact with his client and the public.” PURCHASES .RESID_ENCE. Dr. Willis B. Morse Buys Former Home of John J. Deviny. Dr. Willis B. Morse has purchased the resilence at 666 Maryland avenue northeast, formerly the home of John J. Deviny, president of the United Ty- pothetae of America, it is announced by the office of Robert W. Savage, which handled the transaction. Dr. Morse will occupy the property as an office and residence. A_competent yi man in the building construction industry, who simplicity of Puritan austerity or epi- tomize all the dignity of the great fami- lies of post-Revolutionary days. Choice Residence Lots in — Chevy & & = « « Chase values himself at five thousand a year is open for a position. For particulars Address Box 314 Star Office. RHODA A Red-Headed Girl By Henry Kitchell Webster Copyright 1920, North American Newspaper Alllance and Metropolitan Newspaper Service. rd. “People buy, sell and mortgage homes, | to THE EVENING STAR, WASHINGTON, D. C., SATURDAY, DECEMBER 14, 1929, REAL ESTATE. is_there, wettine for her. Forbes soothes her panic and csks s her (0 marry him A They are 1ied the mext day, wnd about to clear her father's name. Their fir<t step 's to examine the papors in the senled trunk. THIRTIETH INSTALLMENT. HERE are about a hundred of 6é these sheets that are written in lead pencil, but all the others are carbon copies,” said Martin, as he examined the contents of the trunk. “The pen- clled sheets aren't different in any other way that I can see from the car- bons. They're in the same handwriting, anyhiow. Can you make anything of th ;{hodl was busy with luncheon prep- arations, and she said she couldn’t. Then she saw him get up in a preoc- cupled sort of way and go over to the telephone. He called the ‘Worcester Hotel, asked for Uncle William and got him. Then he said: “This is Martin Forbes. Rhoda and I were married this morning. We're going to_have a con- ference this afternoon at 3 o'clock, and we'd like you to be here, if you can, and bring the contract between Forster and Prof. McFarland with you.” “What did he say?” she asked, as Martin hung up. “Didn't he breathe any fire at all about our being mar- ried “Oh, no, he took that all right. I thought he would.” He spoke absently and she saw he was getting ready to telephone again. This call was even more astonishing. It was the Worcester again and he asked for Mr. Forster’s apartment. He rec- ognized the answering voice, for he said, “Conley? Take this message for Mr. Forster. Say that Miss McFarland has recovered her father’s trunk and if the contents of it interest him, as we be- lieve they will, now we've examined them, he can come to her studio this afternoon at 3 o'clock and discuss what's to be done about them. Find out if we're to expect him, will you?” There was a breathless pause of about a minute. Then Martin said: “All right; 3 o'clocl and hung up. There was a queer, rather scared look in his face as he turned back to her. “Martin,” she cried, “have you found jt—have you found the thing he wants' He shook his head. a thing,” he told he T've got to find it. She did get him to stop his labors long enough to eat, but it wasn’t a con- vivial meal. As soon as he had swallowed what was on his plate he took his cup of cof- fee and went back to the trunk. He was still there when Uncle William came—so strangely transformed an Un- cle William that Rhoda forgot all about Martin for several minutes. ~There wasn't_a trace of the ogre left about him. He jocosely claimed the right to kiss the bride and reproached her play- fully for having kept him in the dark about something. though what it was she couldn't at first make out. It was not, it seemed, her unpremeditated marriage this morning. ‘Then he began apologizing to Martin. He was afraid his manner last night, when he had been quite in the dark as to who Martin really was, hadn't beenth%m appropriate. Then he said 10 “I haven't found ‘But now, you see, a “I want to acknowledge that my mo- mentary suspicion that his interest in you was heightened by his knowledge of the possibility that you might turn out CHEVY CHASE, D. C. * New Detached Colonial Brick Homes . 3632 Everett Street Just West of Conmn. Ave. 2 ‘squares south of Harrison St. Allbrick construction, 8 rooms, 2 colored tile baths, Frigidaire and 2-car built-in garages. $18,500 "<l tiome OPEN SUNDAY in Trade NodSansbury 1418 Eve St. Nat'l 5908 | holding_ever since he'd got up to let to be, so to speak, an heiress, became grotesque as soon as I looked up what he spoke of on the way home as his references and learned that he had an independent fortune of his own.” She turned a bewildered look on Mar- tin. He had been glancing through a sheaf of yellow papers which he'd been Untle William in. He forgot them now, however, long enough to come over to her and put an arm around her. 's nothing to bother about, dar- ling,” he said. “I wasn't keeping any- thing dark. I'd have told you if there'd been time. But there's always been something more important to talk about. As a matter of fact, there is now. Forster will be getting here any minute. Rhoda, what was the date of your father’s death? Do you remember ex- actly? She did, and she told him. He looked down at the papers again with an intensity of concentration that held them both silent. “Look here, darling,” he said. “Look at the date on these sheets. They're carbons, you see, of the last notes he ever made. See what he's written on the bottom of this page. It's the last page of all. “Try this tomorrow. Think it's right at last’ Well, it was right. Those few hours he begged the doctor for were all he needed, but the doctor couldn't give them to him.” Down at the foot of the long flight of stairs they heard the street door open. Martin turned to Uncle William. Have you got that contract with you, sir? Right here in your pockef, I mean? Because if that's Forster we're going to need it.” Uncle William felt in his pocket and nodded. Martin ment out into looked down the stairs. he said as he came back. carrying him up.” The wait while Conley struggled with his burden up those long, straight flights of stairs seemed endle: Forster, by the time he'd been de- posited in a big chair, was as breathle: and as nearly exhausted—with terrorsf that he’d be dropped, most likely—as the man who carried him. “Well,” he panted, “I've come—on some fool's errand, I ‘expect. I can't think of anything among the professor's papers that I'd be especially interested in, now.” But his look, darting rat-like about the studio, belied his words, and, when it lighted upon the little trunk surrounded by the heaps of yellow sheets, it remained fixed, fascinated. “I thought,” Martin observed, “that you'd be interested in these notes. You must have seen something very like them before—in the laboratory just after Prof. McFarland died.” “Possibly,” Forster admitted. “I'd been financing him while he was trying to discover an oil process. He died withov* getting anywhere with it. I hired snother man and he discovered the thing almost at once. It was a very able discovery, and I've made a great deal of money on it. The profes- sor didn't make it. He tried to and he failed. I don't believe that these papers you've got here are worth anything. B f they are worth anything, and the professor held them out, theyre my property. He was working under con- tract with me, and he had no right to hold anything out.” “He didn’t hold anything out,” Mar- tin said. “There was nothing in the trunk that you didn't find the exact duplicate of when you took possession of the laboratory. And, to put it the other way around, there was nothing among the notes in the laboratory that there wasn't an exact duplicate of in the entry and Forster,"” “Conley's the trunk. v “What's that?” cried Uncle William, | sharply. Martin turned to Rhoda. “Don’t you; see how it was? Your father safe- guarded himself against the very thing that finally happened. During the years that he worked in Forster's lab. oratory he kept a daily record of every- thing he did, of his experiments, of his calculations, even his guesses as they occurred to him. He wrote them all down in tablets which had alternate pages that could be torn out, and he kept a carbon copy of every mote and diagram, every pencil scratch that he made. Every night he brought home the dated carbon copies of that day's notes and threw them in that trunk. “That's what he almost always,di ninety-nine times out of a hundred. But once in a hundred times it hap- pened that what he brought home weren't the carbons but the original penciled notes. From this point of view it was important which he brought home. He had with him in his personal possession all the time an absolutely complete record of all the work he had done, against the chance that Forster might some day try to beat him out of his dues. Well, he completed his process right up to the outline of the last confirma- tory experiments. He had it right, at last, the day before he died.” “You can't prove that!” Forster snarled. b “You're going to prove it for me) Martin answered, “within five minutes. Then he turned back to Rhoda. «Forster had his process, and he didn't doubt that he was safe in steal- ing your father's share of it. He maae his ‘deal and his contracts, collected his royalties. The probable existence of your father’s copy of their contracy didn’t bother him a_bit. He could say what he said to us just now, and there was, he thought, no proof to the con- trary. Byt at some_time or other, nov so very ‘flmg ago, 1 imagine, looking over the log that he'd found in the laboratory, he discovered here and there a carbon sheet in place of the original. And then he knew what your father had done. He knew that, 1t these sheets hadn't been destroyed and ever fell into the hands of any friena of yours who recognized what they were, he could be forced to an ac- counting and made to pay every cent that the contract called for. When he realized that he began to advertise §or the whereabouts of Rhoda McFar- land.” Forster's face was white with terror, but once more he bleated stubbornly, “You can't prove it!” “I said you were going to prove it Martin reminded him. “You have proved it to my satisfaction by coming here today. But I'll tell you what I'm going to do. If you insist that the process you are using isn't Prof. McFarland's _ process, but something else, I'll publish these notes of his and make the world a present of them.” Forster sank back in his chair with a groan. “All right” he said. “Tll buy them of you. How much do you want?” Martin turned to Uncle William. “I think we'll leave the price to the legal department,” he said. “But Rhoda wants something more out of Forster than the money her father earned.” He paused an instant, then turnea to Forster. “She doesn't want revengu. She won't prosecute you and your nephew’s wife for conspiracy unless she'’s forced to. But she wants a sworn statement from you that to your per- sonal knowledge her father was inno- cent of the California charges ana; framed against him Exhibit Seven large rooms. Tiled bath, built The price 717 Union Trust Bldg. Beautiful Homes . . . Excellent Values n The Nearest Restricted New Development to Downtown Washington! 216 17th Place N.E. % (OPEN DAILY TO 9 PM.) L Kitchen modernly equipped, natural hardwood trim, pancled walls, attractive elec. fixtures, new type furnace, laundry trays, basement toilet. A growing community adjacent to Eastern High School are agreeably surprising From 17th St. and East Capitol drive two squares north SEE OUR SIGN Robert W. Savage or Your Broker Home arge closets. Garage. -in tub, shower. including inlaid linoleum floor and terms National 6799 1207 Hamilton 12,000 {ur the purpose of forcing him out of i the university.” This time it was Uncle William who started to protest. “My dear Martin—" But Martin cut him short. *“The two go together,” he said. “We'll accept a settlement, if the sworn statement goes with it. Otherwise we'll publish the notes and prosecute for conspiracy. We want this thing cleaned up.” There was still some fight in Uncle William, but Forster threw up the sponge. “Al right,” he grunted. “We'll get together next week and I'll have my lawyer draw up a settlement. I don’t mind that. I never had anything to do with it. It was my scamp of a secretary who fixed up the whole thing and he's dead.” Then, to Conley, “Take m!‘Bbut of here.” ut at the door, just before Conle; picked him up, he seemed to feel lhl{ he had slighted Uncle William. Perhaps he recognized a kindred spirit. “My car is down here,” he said. “You can rive back with me to the Worcester if yl)uz llked." . “I didn't think last night,” RI said, after an interval, "tghlt I g)fia ever hate anybody as much as I hated Bwllnrl.r(fl:).nt:r. But I uate Uncle William Martin admitted that there n't much to choose between them. “But they're both going to be good, now,” he concluded. “B#t Uncle William,” Rhoda insisted. “He didn't want Forster to agree to tell the truth about father. And, if he does, Uncle William will try to suppress it. Why, Martin? Did he always hate father?” “He probably didn't like him too well, but that isn't the reason. He wants to suppress the truth because it will show that he made a ghastly mistake. It isn't malice; it's pure vanity.” He spoke so confidently that she turned a sudden intent look upon him. “Have you thought of something else”" she asked. “Something you haven't told me about?” “It- was the first thing I did think of, but it wasn't any good until the thing for you to do. You can do it as soon as Uncle William asks you how you want to invest the money he's got out of Forster. I don’t know how much it will be, but it's sure to be plenty. You tell him that you want to endow a special fund at the university for chemical research. Tell him that there’s just one condition tied to it, and that is that it shall be called the rial. That will settle Uncle Willlam For Sale or Rent Bungalow—near Lyon Village. ‘Two bedrooms, bath, living room, den, dining room, kitchen. Cellar under entire house. Pipeless fur- nace, electric range, garage, chicken house. Rent, $37.50 Will Sell for $5,500.00 Franklin 7020 rest of the plan worked out. It's some- | 8! ‘Walter Whitehouse McFarland Memo- | d and all the rest of the scandalmon- Rather soberly, as the dusk drew down to dark, they d ‘the won- der of this prospect and other wonders, They'd set off tomorrow, Martin said, on their honeymoon. “But, Martin, will you do something else?” asked Rhoda. *‘Something rather silly? After we've had dinner, will you take me to the AThambra and dance with me a while?” “Sure, T will,” he assented with a laugh, “if you'll agree not to let Lean- ler Higgins cut in. For Sale Co-Operative Apartment The Northumberland 2039 New Hampshire Ave. NlW. Price, $8,000.00 Will Exchange for Apartment: “BLENHEIM” Built two hundred yvears ago, recently remodeled. Located or 600 acres of fertile land—well watered and partly timbered. W. S. HOGE, Jr. 1517 K St. N.W. Open Today From 10 Until 6 Attractively Priced 1119 17th STREET Wesley Hrinhts “THE GARDEN SPOT OF WASHINGTON” E 1B D A Beautiful French Norman Home Containing 8 Rooms and 3 Baths, Situated on an Unusually Large Lot That Has a Magnificent Elevation and Only a Half Block From the Park. W. C. & A. N. MILLER REALTORS e e 09 e I T ST RIEZENT DECATUR 0610 Apartment Dwellers Without sacrificing any of the comforts and conveniences you now enjoy—you can spend the happiest Christ- mas you ever had—by your own real fire- side—in a home of your very own in Sheridan Park . This new development of moderate priced homes situated in the exclusive upper Sixteenth street residential section offers you the sort of home you have often dreamed of own- 1gg_—dlstinctive in design—substantially constructed—ar- tistically arranged and finished and completely equipped with every modern labor-saving feature, including: Y'OU could not select a finer location or environment in which to erect the home you plan to build. It offers every advantage, including an CONSTANTLY increasing land values make the pur- chase of lots in this highly de- sirable residential section a AN OIL BURNER HEATING PLANT which permits you to regu- late the temperature of your home with the mere movement of your BUILF-IN GARAGE large enough for two cars . . . no night parking on the street . . . no expense for garage storage. splendid investment. Here you are insured against unwel- come encroachments because this Nationally Known suburb lies in a most carefully— Restricted Area W atmosphere of refinement— cultured neighbors—select schools — beautiful and stores with the choicest of everything. Attractive churches Terms & b DETACHED—4 BED ROOMS Lot 160 Feet Deep A most attractive detached home in a home owners’ community. On the first floor is a large living room with open fireplace, attractive dining room, sun parlor and a good sized kitchen with brand-new stove. Ample pantry space. On the second floor there are four defightful bed rooms and attic over the entire house. The lot ts beau- finger . . . no fires to build . . . no coal to shovel . . . no dust, dirt or ashes . . . the temperature auto- matically controlled . . . kept at just the degree you want it. ELECTRIC REFRIGERATION . cheaper than ice and more satisfactory for keeping foodstuffs . . . no muss « . . no drip pans to empty. TWO BATHS . . . one equipped with built-in shower . . . both fully tiled and equipped with latest built-in fixtures. THREE LARGE BEDROOMS with a sleeping porch which may be screened or glassed in to provide an additional sleeping room. LARGE KITCHEN with every built-in convenience . . . laundry ... landscaped front lawns and many other features. We cordially invite your inspection of this high-class development of extraordinary homes, the prices of which range from $12,500 to $14,750. EXHIBIT HOME OPEN UNTIL 9 P.M. DAILY Drive out 16th St. to Sheridan St., then one block east. Plats and Information Furnished Upon Request Spwelol Sudcpussitts To Those Who Will Build tifully landscaped, with a garage on a paved alley. Con- veniently situated between two car lines and close to graded and junior high school. Opposite 16th Street Entrance to Rock Creek Golf Course. % Phone District 6830 Thomas J. Fisher & Co. INCORPORATED 738 15th St. N.W. Phone District 6830 7 - Natl. 5833 OPEN FOR YOUR INSPECTION SUNDAY National Mortg. & Inv. Corp. 1004 Vt. Ave. ARDMAN 1437 K Street N.W. District 3830