New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-09-20
RrNrs.

lectation of that astute class of philosophers
We design, in this crisis of the great struggle
for house-room, to perplex our readers Will
profound dispositions or a question which
now presents itself in the eminently practical
form of s'your greenbaeks or your life" For
we take it for granted that one of the necessi
ties Of humanity in this advanced stage Of
; human existence-urbanly considered at
least-is to have resting place within -four
walls from the weary hbors of the day.
Hence, from this point of view, it would seem
that a reasonable answer to the question,
t'what is rent2" would be that rent is simply
the sum of money which houseless people
have to pay in order to supply that deficiency,
But there is persistent tendency in the popu-
lar mind not to put up nth simple explansS
tons. People seem never to be satisfied WITH
what they can understand. 1t is the same spirit
which once demanded miracle, and which
believes only what is obviously impossible
It is not surprising therefore, that people
have come to believe that rent, so far from
being merely price paid for house-room is
really o very unjustifable, odious and tyran-
nical impost, levied by the avaricious and
adamantine class of landlords on the OBJ
pressed and long suffering class Of tenants.
In popular estimation the typical landlord is
the roaring lion Of society, perpetuaIly on
the rampage to pick up victims for his de-
vouring fangs Personally, he may be a very
good person; he may be tender to his wife,
kind to his children, considerate to his neigh
bors; faithful friend, O good citizen, an
honest man. But diyest him of his person
atty; abstract him from the class homo, and
inoaTnate him simply as a landlord, a man
who has houses and stores to rent and popu-
lar fancy transforms him into raging and
pitiless ogre. And why? Simply because
rents have risen to an unprecedented height
and the landlord is held responsible for the
heavy draughts which are thus made on the
financial capacity Of the community. But the
fact is that house owners, strange as it may
appear, are not necessarily, either roaring
lions or hungry ogres. And, stranger still,
they are not responsible for the rise of rents
any more than the cotton planters are respon-
sible for the rise Of cotton, or corn grower
for the price of grain. The same general
causes which govern prices in one case,
govern them in the other case The great law
of supply and demand, which is more inexora-
bic than the Median and Persian laws of
old, and quite as insuperable as the
laws of celestial or terrestrial mechanics, is
the responsible agent. The fact is, that the
Hsupply Of houses for domestic purposes and
stores for commercial purposes, falls far short
OF the demand, and hence rents must newt
ably rise. The law may be harsh it may be
cruel but, nevertheless, it is law, and the
landlords did not make it. They benefit by
it to be sure and when, in consequence of
an increased supply of houses, rents fall
again, tenants will derive advantage from the |
inverse operation Of the law. And here we
must take occasion to correct an impression |
which, like all preiudices, is fraught with |
mischief, that the high rents are due to usur-
patton Of houses by WORTHLESS negroes
Were it even true that our negro population
has seriously encroached on rs in this way
the fact should be regarded as an indication
Of unexpected industry and thrift on the part
Of that class, from which SO little was ex-
pected, rather than used to stimulate unjust
and unkind feelings. If negroes
'ccupy any large number of houses, they must J
Jay the rent; and if they pay the rent, they
mast exercise some sort of productive and a
emuneratiye industry To suppose that they q
an continue for any length of time to steal a d
wing from the community without working F."
y 1t is to credit them with being good deal q
marter than white folks But the truth is, a
nat the vast majority of the negro population 81
We in quarters and in houses not at all likely g
be tFequented by white people, Certainly "
aey have not taken up the spacious CONNER n
al edltices on Canal and Carondelet streets u
Ne long rows Of stores in Common, Camp, a
FfaVleT, Magazine and Tchoupitoulas streets. q
ne Offices in Exchange Place and Union eN
treet, and it is precisely in these districts
hat rents have risen to their greatest height Of
a many cases to two and three hundred per Ell
ent, above the highest point which they had &C
cached before the war. N
1t is utterly futile in treating this question, N
go behind the main fact-that rents are d
Ugh because there is not house room enough 81
II either domestic or commercial purposes. III
o speculate on the final cause of the de- re
cheney will not aid in solving that most to
tficult of all problems, "how to make 81
ing cheap when it is scarce and in great de- pc
and?' When cotton goes up in conse- NJ
1enee of short crop, people do not muir 81
ur at the cotton planter They simply tx
ait for larger crop, and the competition Of
hieh high prices must bring to increase the M
Ipply, and thus restore the disturbed su
luilibripm The only solution of this rent CT,
'oblem, which now 50 terribly distresses and MT
'rplexes our people, is to be found in the tal
Hiding Of more houses-a solution which SCI
presume will ultimately be reached For be
g last five years there has been absolutely fel
thing done in the way of building in New an
leans, and yet our population, we really i'm
lieve, is at least twenty-five per cent. thu
eater than it ever has been. Why there thu
IS nothing done in the way Of improvement cit
ring the war is plain enough. ste
by nothing is done now is not WI
clear. The causes probably, are til,
my and various. But whatever they may be, of
is to be hoped that they will not long CON ex
lue to act. Ii, in the present condition of sci
airs. high rents are necessity, they ara no fol-