The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-09-09
zee awoRLp,s FAIn- coNrssr.
a Clash of interests in the Wrangle
over the Site-MiDlonolre Flower
Compares New YORK and chicago


over the Site-M illionaire Flower
Compares New YORK and Chicago.
Copyright 1887
New YoRK. sent 1.-THE contest over
the site for the worlds fair is still raging
hotly in New York. and number Of promi-
nent capitalists are now interesting them
selves in the rivalry between Tue different
sections wrangliug for the site In order
to shut off some IT the mighty horde of
land spectators who are urging all sorts Of
interested schemes upon the COM
mittee on site, the executive
committee has announced that. for the
present at least, no site outside the city
limits of New York will even be con
sidered uQraar -
This is a facar for several of the real es,
tate pools and syndicates that were in
hopes of getting their projects up before
the committee backed by influence 1t is
not all all certain, however, that obey ar e
more than temporarily beaten off, and that
a suburban site will not yet be chosen.
Meanwhile there is considerable friction
among the members of the committee
themselves, and it would look as though the
feeling of speculation had entered to some
extent into its deliberations. The gentle
men composing the executive committee
are all of too high character to permit
any attempt to subordinate the real inter
ests of the city to the schemes of individ-
uals; at the same time, the exclusion of
reporters from their sessions has not con-
cealed the fact that they are far from being
a unit as to whore the site should he located.
Two are said to favor Rivers dc park, one
is for Port Morris, while still others are be-
lieved to want lnwood. 1t is about settled
that it will 60 to the North river instead of
the East, as many spectators had hopel;
the reason being that a site on the west
hu ff ha bR
most accessible to the vast volume Of travel
over the railroads from the north, south
and west and for the European steamship
lines also.
Ex-congressman and ex-presidential can
didate Roswell Pettib0ne Flower is the
temporary Chairman of the executive COM
mittea ON site. He is an active advocate Of
some site on the west side Of the city and
gives railroad mans reasons for his pre-
ference. At the same time, he believes
that any of the sites thus far suggested
would do, provided it has all the necessary
water and railroad facilities.
Fifteen million dollars will be raised for
the fair" said Mr.. Flower, land none of
| the business subscriptions will be less than
| $4,000. The finance committee will make
its report in three weeks or u month, aud
| then the money will pour in from every
| side. We will not need any help from
other states, from the state legislature or
the national government. We will be
| willing to contribute twenty times what is
actually needed right here in New Y ork.
| "Chicagol doa't care anything q, OFT
| Chicago. Us New York we think about
| Chicago stands no comparison as place
| for the fair. You couldn't center the man
ufacturing interest in Chicago, as well as
| you can here in New York, and you
couldn't get foreigners to travel 200 miles
inland. Yet there isn't a manufactures in
| Chicago who shows his wares here, who
| will not be amply repaid for his trouble
believe it viii do Chicago more good TO
have the fair in Nav York titan to have it
in Chicago But / recognize that Chicago
Is great city, and one that is bound to De
| even greater. Within twenty years, more
| people will live wlthlu 800 miles Of Chicago
| than ia any place of similar size in the
| United States. But when the people talk
Of having IA fair, they come here for the
| plrpose of having the benefit OF the manu-
featuring center, although Chicago is q great
manufacturing city now. She manufact-
ures nearly as much steel rs the whole OF
England. l have no doubt that Chicago
| will give way to the greater advantages
possessed by New York, aud the manufact-
uring display here is sure to be immense.
All Of the New England manufactures,
| those OF PennSylvania and otfter large cen
tors together vii! make it the greatest az
gregation Of manufacturing interests ever
witnessed.
Then" added Mr.. Flower. "the reve-
nue. 10 be derived will be something enorm-
Gus, and the benefit to accrue to manufac.
turers will be in proportion The Conte
NAL ut Philadelphia brought maaufacturers
over from Europe to show their wares j.
this country. W hen they came, thew saw
manufactures which very few people be-
lieved we had in this country. They were
impre 7sed accordingly. The result was of
| the utmost benefit to our manufacturer.
As an illustration: The Globe Woollel
| Mills in Utica found so many new custo-
meTs for their goods that they have hardly
been able to fill orders since. It has been
| 50 with many other manufacturers and will
be so with thousands. | beieve, to-, tina
it will be q long time before some Of rte
| features of the fair will bs discontinued
| When merchants find that they have
place whore they can snow their goods t
the world, they will be slow TO yield up the
advantages which a site here confers; 70
| they cannot get these advantages anywhere
! else in this country.
LAS to the site, there are plenty Of places
with all the needed facilities. Central
| Park might be taken as a last resort. The
| law protecting it might be overcome by q
special act Of che legislature at the coming
| session"
| In closing the CONVEX sation. Mr.. Flower
|
paign of 1884, at which time he was presi
dential candidate.
Yes" said the millionaire with a laugh.
81 had it bad at that time; but 70
| got over it. I've been discharged cure d."
There is little doubt that Mr.
Flower is right in declaring that the bust
ness men of New York will work like
! beavers for the success of the fair. More
depends on its financial success THAI ap-
pears on the surface.
"Of course, the fair will boom things a
good DEAL" said one of the most extensive
commission merchants on the west de,
'but New York will hardly see, during he
present generation, the same prosperity he
enjoyed ten years ago. sine Is no longer
only recognized trade center OF the uuioa
During the last eight or nine years, macy
New York houses have changed thei
base Of operations, aid now they have
either great branches or separate establish
meuts in Chicago, st. Louis, Baltimore
and BostoE-all of those cities having
s0rung into prominence as trade centers
and as points for importers and export
ers 20 do business from. Look al
the crop Of big houses that has risen IN
Chicago in half dozen years. Very many
of them are managed by New York men
The buyers from the west and southwes
are now stopped at Chicago a d St. Louis
They don't need to come east to this city t.
do business. And It's the same only in G
smaller degree, in half dozen cities. II